German Phrase
Ein Buch hat 20 Briefmarken.
Meaning
The sentence states that a particular book contains twenty postage stamps. It can be used to describe the contents of a scrapbook, a collector’s album, or any book that holds stamps.
When to use
Use this sentence when you want to talk about the number of items inside a book, especially in lessons about numbers, possession, or vocabulary related to collecting.
✦Grammar Breakdown
EinBuchhat20Briefmarken.
Indefinite article (Ein)
‘Ein’ is the nominative indefinite article for masculine and neuter nouns; ‘Buch’ is neuter, so ‘ein Buch’ is correct.
Verb ‘haben’ (hat)
‘haben’ means ‘to have’; in the present tense third‑person singular it becomes ‘hat’.
Number agreement
Numbers in German do not change with gender; ‘20’ stays the same before a plural noun.
Plural noun (Briefmarken)
‘Briefmarke’ (stamp) adds –n in the plural, becoming ‘Briefmarken’.
🗨In Conversation
Wie viele Briefmarken hat das Buch?
How many stamps does the book have?
Ein Buch hat 20 Briefmarken.
A book has 20 stamps.
✕Common Mistakes
Eine Buch hat 20 Briefmarken.
‘Buch’ is neuter, so the correct indefinite article is ‘ein’, not ‘eine’.
Ein Buch ist 20 Briefmarken.
‘sein’ (is) expresses a state, not possession. Use ‘hat’ for ‘has’.
Ein Buch hat 20 Briefmarke.
The plural of ‘Briefmarke’ is ‘Briefmarken’; dropping the –n makes the sentence ungrammatical.
↔Alternatives
Das Buch enthält 20 Briefmarken.
The book contains 20 stamps.
In dem Buch sind 20 Briefmarken.
In the book there are 20 stamps.
Cultural Tip
In German, ‘haben’ is the standard verb for possession, unlike English which can also use ‘contain’. ‘Briefmarken’ are a popular hobby in Germany; collectors often keep them in special books called ‘Sammelalben’. Remember that ‘Buch’ is neuter, so the indefinite article is ‘ein’, not ‘eine’.