Have time means to have enough time for something, to manage to fit it in. It's usually about time for a specific task: have time to cook, have time for a coffee. In the negative, it means you didn't manage to do something: I didn't have time to call you.
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have time to + verb; have time for + noun; don't have time / have no time
- I don't have time to read the whole report, so I'll check the summary.
- Do you have time for a quick coffee after the lecture?
- On holiday I finally had time to finish two novels.
What changed
First versionSorry, I didn't have a time to call you yesterday.
RevisionSorry, I didn't have time to call you yesterday.
When time means time in general, it's uncountable, so it takes no a: have time, don't have time. A time means an occasion or a period in your life, as in have a good time, “enjoy yourself”. That's where the confusion comes from.
Do you have time? means “have you got a minute?”. Do you have the time?, with the, means “what time is it?”, and it's what you ask a stranger in the street. Have a good time is a third phrase, meaning “enjoy yourself”: Have a good time at the party!
Your turn
Between work and my evening course, I rarely ___ to cook a proper dinner.
Show the answer
have time — Here time means time for cooking, which is uncountable, so no article is needed. People don't say have a time in this sense: a time appears in phrases like have a good time, “enjoy yourself”.
Describe something you never seem to have enough time for. Name it and explain what gets in the way.
I never have time to practise the guitar because I work late most evenings.
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