The short answer
When have means possess — owning a car, a house, a brother — it is a stative verb, describing a state rather than an action. Stative verbs do not take the continuous (-ing) form in standard English. Say “He has a car”, never “He is having a car.”
Wrong vs. Right
Wrong
He is having a car.
Right
He has a car.
Wrong
I am having two brothers.
Right
I have two brothers.
Wrong
She is having a big house in Delhi.
Right
She has a big house in Delhi.
Wrong
They are having a lot of problems with the vendor.
Right
They have a lot of problems with the vendor.
Why Do People Say It?
Many Indian languages don’t distinguish between a stative “have” (possession) and a dynamic “have” (an action) the way English does — a single verb form covers both senses. Since English speakers use continuous tense constantly for ongoing actions (“I am eating”, “she is working”), it feels natural to apply the same pattern to “have” too, without realising the possession sense is an exception.
When “Having” Is Actually Correct
This is the part most learners miss: “have” is not always stative. When it describes an action — eating, giving birth, holding an event, experiencing something — it becomes a normal dynamic verb, and the continuous form is completely standard:
“We are having lunch right now.”
'having' = eating, an action, not possession
“She is having a baby next month.”
'having' = giving birth, an event
“They are having a meeting at 3 pm.”
'having' = attending/holding, an action
“I am having a great time at the wedding.”
'having' = experiencing, an ongoing action
How this appears in SSC CGL error spotting
“My uncle / is having a large farmhouse / near the river / on the outskirts of the city. / No error.”
(A) My uncle
(B) is having a large farmhouse ✓ Error here
(C) near the river
(D) No error
Answer: (B) — “farmhouse” is owned, not an action. The correct form is “has a large farmhouse”.
Exam tip
Ask yourself: can this “have” be replaced with “own”, “possess”, or “there is/are”? If yes, it’s stative — never use “-ing”. If the sentence is really about eating, an event, or an experience, “-ing” is fine.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is 'he is having a car' wrong?+
'Have' meaning to possess or own something is a stative verb — it describes a state, not an action, and stative verbs cannot take the continuous ('-ing') form in standard English. Say 'He has a car', not 'He is having a car'.
Is 'I am having lunch' also wrong, then?+
No, that one is correct. 'Have' changes meaning depending on context: when it means 'possess' (a car, a house, a brother), it is stative and cannot take '-ing'. When it means an action like 'eat' (having lunch), 'give birth' (having a baby), or 'hold/attend' (having a meeting), it becomes a dynamic verb and the continuous form is perfectly correct.
What is a stative verb?+
A stative verb describes a state, feeling, or relationship that doesn't change moment to moment — like know, believe, own, belong, and 'have' meaning possess. Stative verbs are not normally used in continuous tenses. Compare this with dynamic verbs like run, eat, or write, which describe actions and freely take '-ing'.
Read Next
Stative Verbs — Complete Guide
The full list of verbs that never take the continuous form
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Another Indian English meaning-shift error
Indian English Errors Hub
All Indianisms — why they exist and what to say instead
Error Spotting MCQs — 100 Questions
Practice sets 1–10, timed with scoring