had

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   simple past and past participle of have

   This morning I had an egg for breakfast.

2. 2
   verb

   Used to form the past perfect tense, expressing an action that took place prior to a reference point that is itself in the past.

   I felt sure that I had seen him before.

3. 3
   verb

   As past subjunctive: would have.

   To holde myne honde, by God, I had grete payne; / For forthwyth there I had him slayne, / But that I drede mordre wolde come oute[…].

Etymology

From Middle English hadde (preterite), yhad (past participle), from Old English hæfde (first and third person singular preterite), ġehæfd (past participle), from Proto-Germanic *habdaz, past and past participle stem of *habjaną (“to have”), equivalent to have + -ed. Cognate with Dutch had, German hatte, Swedish hade, Icelandic hafði.