have a thing

English

Verb

have a thing (third-person singular simple present has a thing, present participle having a thing, simple past and past participle had a thing)

2. (informal) To be in a casual or illicit romantic relationship.

   Synonym: have a thing going on

   Brad and Mary have a thing.

   They’ve got a thing.

   They had a thing, but it's over now.

4. (informal, usually with for) To have a crush on, or a soft spot for, someone or something.

   Synonyms: have the hots for, fancy

   Brad has a thing for Mary.

   I have a thing for ghost stories.

6. (informal, usually with about) To have an issue, such as a hang-up.

   Don't ask Mary to drive you there, because she has a thing about highway driving. It sometimes gives her panic attacks.

   He has a thing about not stepping on sidewalk cracks.

Usage notes

The relation of have to have got governs as usual; thus, we've got a thing or (dialectally) we got a thing are alloforms.