Have a cold means to be ill with a cold: a runny nose, a cough, a sore throat. Here cold is a noun, the name of the illness, so it takes a. In British English people often say I've got a cold.
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have a cold; have a bad/heavy cold; have got a cold (BrE); catch a cold
- I've had a cold since Monday, so I'm working from home this week.
- She had a bad cold and missed the first day of her holiday.
- Drink plenty of tea and get some rest if you have a cold.
What changed
First versionI can't come to the lesson today because I have cold.
RevisionI can't come to the lesson today because I have a cold.
In English, a cold counts as one particular illness, so it needs a in front of it. Without the article the sentence sounds ungrammatical. The correction adds a.
I'm cold has nothing to do with illness: it means you feel cold. I'm cold, can you close the window? Catch a cold is the moment you fall ill: I caught a cold on the plane. Have a cold means you're ill right now.
Your turn
I've been sneezing all week and my throat hurts — I think I ___.
Show the answer
have a cold — Sneezing all week and a sore throat are signs of a cold, so the answer is have a cold. Am cold means you feel cold and says nothing about being ill.
Describe a time when you had a cold. Say when it was and what you did to get better.
Last winter I had a cold for a week, so I stayed in bed and drank hot tea with lemon.
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