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How do you say "hadn't made them" with didn't?

English Language Learners Asked by bambi on October 27, 2020

"I didn’t have this" is equivalent to "I hadn’t this"

But is there an equivalent sentence to

"I hadn’t made them"?

I can’t think of one, because "I didn’t made them" doesn’t sound grammatical.

One Answer

No, you can't.

Have has two different functions: it can be an auxiliary to form "perfect" constructions, or it can be used as a substantive verb meaning "possess" etc.

As an auxiliary, it never takes "do"-support: it forms negatives and questions directly:

I have seen it.

I haven't (have not) seen it.

Have you seen it?

I hadn't seen it.

etc.

As a substantive verb, it can form negatives and questions the same way;

I hadn't any.

Have they any?

but these forms are increasingly rare* and usually get replaced by "do"-support, like ordinary verbs:

I didn't have any.

Do they have any?

But your have made them is a perfect, and cannot take "do"-support.

*The use of substantive have without "do" support is more common in British than American English, but even here it is disappearing. Fifty years ago, Do you have ...? simply didn't occur in British English (except in a habitual sense, eg Do you have dances in your village?). The normal form was Have you got ...? or more formally, Have you ...? Do you have...? was something that we heard Americans saying.

Answered by Colin Fine on October 27, 2020

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