¿A quién pertenece este solar?
Whose is this piece of land?
¿A quién pertenecen esas tierras?
Whose is that land?^10 (p. 42)
40.5 Other ways of expressing possession
40.5.1 Tener
To ask and answer questions regarding possessions as in ‘Have you got a... ?’ ‘I have
one/two.. .’, etc., Spanish normally uses the verb tener, ‘to have’.
¿Tienes cinco euros?
Have you got five euros?
No tengo nada de dinero.
I haven’t got any money.
¿Cuántos hijos tenéis?
How many children have you got?
Tenemos tres.
We have three.40.5.2 Poseer, disponer de, contar con
In formal language you will sometimes hear poseer, ‘to possess’, disponer de and
contar con, ‘to have’.
Posee una gran fortuna.
He/she possesses a great fortune.
Dispone de un cuantioso capital.
He/she has a considerable capital.
¿Con cuánto dinero cuentan?
How much money have you got?
Contamos con muy poco.
We have very little.^10 (p. 42); 38.3.3 (p. 229)
NOTE Contar is a radical-changing verb (see 16.1.2.1).Other ways of expressing possession 40.5