have/have got

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CalifJim  #387197  Mon, 02 Jul 07 08:53 PM

And why is it not "have gotten" instead of "have got" ?

Isn't it that the correct construction is:          have +  past participle(verb) ?

There are two past participles of the verb "to get"!  got and gotten.  In the perfect tenses, the British use got, and the Americans use gotten.

However, in the special case of the idiom have got, which is not a true perfect tense, British and American usage agree.  have got is used in both varieties of English.  Note that the idiom has the form of a (BrE) perfect tense, but the meaning of a present tense.

See also Post:47932.

CJ

  
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Hxcboatcaptain  #387289  Tue, 03 Jul 07 04:11 AM
 Nona The Brit wrote:
'I have got' is only used in British English.


That's not necessarily true. As a matter of fact, I overuse "I have got..." "I have gotten..." is more common here though.
  
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