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Which of the two sentences is correct and why:

I got it covered.

or

I've got it covered.

Edit:

I am referring to usage that implies that you have something under control:

Sally: Did you gather everything we need to go on vacation?
Moe: I('ve) got it covered.

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Your question is currently unanswerable, except to say that both are correct in some circumstances and both are incorrect in other circumstances. Without more context, this question is undecidable. See my answer. – tchrist Dec 13 '12 at 20:03
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Would the person voting to close as General Reference kindly provide the URL at which this question is alleged to be answered? – tchrist Dec 13 '12 at 20:07
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@tchrist Not my vote, but how about english.stackexchange.com/questions/67590/… – Andrew Leach Dec 13 '12 at 22:28
@AndrewLeach Yes, now. Before, it didn’t have enough context to be answered. – tchrist Dec 13 '12 at 23:04
All the answers overlooked the obvious: I have it covered. Got, a word with many uses, is a crude substitute for have, and have got is two words where one suffices. 've got is a wrongheaded fix for using two words where one suffices. – Kaz Dec 14 '12 at 4:50

closed as not constructive by John Lawler, FumbleFingers, JSBձոգչ, J.R., tchrist Dec 13 '12 at 23:04

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2 Answers

up vote 2 down vote

It depends on the exact context and circumstance. These are all correct:

  • I didn’t think I would have enough time to cover it before the storm hit, but right in the nick of time, I got it covered.

  • Please check the “37” spot on your bingo cards, folks. I’ve got it covered on mine; what about you?

  • Sometimes your burrito shows up completely bare, and sometimes it comes covered with cheese and green chile. Most of the time that I’ve liked it, I’ve gotten it covered.

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I think the OP is asking about the slang/figurative use of this phrase, where it means something like "I'm in the process of taking care of it". (For what it's worth, I think I've usually heard/seen that as "I've got it covered", but it can be hard to tell in spoken usage.) – Marthaª Dec 13 '12 at 20:04
@Marthaª Without more explanation, the question cannot be definitively answered, since there are places where each would be wrong and places where each would be right. – tchrist Dec 13 '12 at 20:06
Syntactically, there's also the non-standard heavily elided pronunciation of @Marthaª's sense as I got. "Not a problem, man, I got it covered." – StoneyB Dec 13 '12 at 20:10
@StoneyB But how could one ever now that that is what is being asked? This just isn’t a real question as worded. It means clarification. – tchrist Dec 13 '12 at 20:12
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@tchrist: all of your examples have something that is literally covered — with a tarp, with a bingo marker, with cheese and green chile. The vastly more common usage of this phrase does not involve anything being literally covered. "Have we found a Santa for the office party yet?" "Not yet, but don't worry, I've got it covered." – Marthaª Dec 13 '12 at 20:27
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up vote 1 down vote

The slang version of "I've got it covered" is "I got it covered." This is similar to the use of "I got it" that's been shortened from "I've got it". Sometimes it's minimal form is used "got it." Like most slang it's not very specific, especially the minimal form, which could mean several things.

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