have to, must

Have to is NOT an auxiliary verb (it uses the verb have as a main verb).
We include have to here for convenience.

Must is a modal auxiliary verb.

In this lesson we look at have to, must and must not, followed by
a quiz to check your understanding.

have to for objective obligation

We often use have to to say that something is obligatory, for example:

 Children have to go to school.

Note that we can use the have to expression in all tenses, for
example: he has to, he had to, he has had to, he will have to

Structure of have to

Have to is often grouped with modal auxiliary verbs for convenience, but
in fact it is not a modal verb. It is not even an auxiliary verb. In the have
to structure, "have" is a main verb.

The basic structure for have to is:

subject + auxiliary verb + have + to-infinitive

Look at these examples in the Present Simple tense:

main verb
subject auxiliary verb have to-infinitive

+ She has to work.

- I do not have to see the doctor.

? Did you have to go to school?

Use of have to

In general, have to expresses impersonal obligation. The subject

of have to is obliged or forced to act by a separate, external power (for
example, the Law or school rules). Have to is objective. Look at these
examples:

 In France, you have to drive on the right.

 In England, most schoolchildren have to wear a uniform.

 John has to wear a tie at work.

In each of the above cases, the obligation is not the subject's opinion or
idea. The obligation comes from outside.

We can use have to in all tenses, and also with modal auxiliaries. We
conjugate it just like any other main verb. Here are some examples:

main verb
subject auxiliary verb have to-infinitive

Past Simple I had to work yesterday.

Present Simple I have to work today.

Future Simple I will have to work tomorrow.

Present Continuous She is having to wait.

Present Perfect We have had to change the time.

modal may They may have to do it again.

Have to y has to para obligaciones

Ñ
en inglés – cómo usarlos y ejemplos
Hoy, vamos a hablar de cómo expresar obligaciones con have to y has to en
inglés.
La verdad es que para hablar de la obligación, tenemos varias palabras y
estructuras. El más sencillo, de todos modos, es con have to.
I have to get up early tomorrow. = Tengo que levantarme temprano mañana.
She has to go to the doctor. = Ella tiene que ir al médico.
Have to se usa para hablar de una obligación que nos viene desde fuera. No es
algo que queremos hacer, pero es algo que trae consecuencias si no lo hacemos.

Ejemplos de obligaciones con HAVE TO en

inglés
You have to get a visa to go to the US.
She has to lose weight or she’ll have health problems.
He has to pay his rent tomorrow.
Las estructuras son parecidas al presente simple, con un verbo en infinitivo
después del have to. El verbo have no tiene más conjugaciones que éstas:
I have to brush my teeth.
You have to brush your teeth.
He has to brush his teeth.
She has to brush her teeth.
We have to brush our teeth.
They have to brush their teeth.

She has to walk the dog twice a day, at least. Foto del autor.

Ahora, vamos a ver negaciones y preguntas con las mismas estructuras…

Negaciones con HAVE TO en inglés
Las negativas se hacen con don’t y doesn’t más el infinitivo: have to.
She doesn’t have to get up early. = Ella no tiene que levantarse temprano.
Ten en cuenta que una negativa con have to expresa que no hay obligación.
Puedes hacerlo si quieres, no es igual que una prohibición. La prohibición se
expresa con shouldn’t y mustn’t.
You mustn’t talk so loud. People are trying to sleep.
You shouldn’t say things like that. Someone might be offended.
Más negativas:
I don’t have to pay the phone bill till next week.
You don’t have to cook dinner.
He doesn’t have to catch the bus in the morning.
She doesn’t have to study for her exam.
We don’t have to leave early.
They don’t have to do anything today.

Preguntas: Do you have to?

Las preguntas se hacen con do y does.
Do I have to get a visa to go to Australia?
Do you have to get up early?
Does he have to cook dinner?
Does she have to buy the tickets?
Do we have to wash the dishes?
Do they have to pay their rent?

Have to y el posesivo con have / has

Todo eso tiene cierto parecido con el posesivo con have o have got. La diferencia
es que para hablar de obligaciones se usa have/has to + infinitivo, mientras que
para hablar de posesión usamos have / has + sustantivo.
I have a cat.
I have to feed the cat. (feed = alimentar)
She has a little brother.
She has to take care of her little brother. (take care of = cuidar)
He has a car.
He has to wash the car.
Does he have a dog?
Does he have to walk the dog?

Un error común con have to y has to en

inglés
¡Cuidado!

Mucha gente comete este error.

Pero ten en cuenta que have es el verbo aquí. El auxiliar es do / does, y se tiene
que usar SIEMPRE en preguntas y negaciones. No lo hagas
con have simplemente.
Have you to pay the rent?(BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD. Desde el siglo XVII que
nadie habla así.)
Do you have to pay the rent? (GOOD!)
Does he have to pay the rent? (GOOD!)
Para más sobre este punto, echa un vistazo a mi artículo sobre cómo
usar do y does. Y también te conviene saber cómo usar el presente perfecto,
porque también utiliza have como verbo auxiliar.
Nada más por hoy…

Buen fin de semana y ¡hasta pronto!

Daniel.

P.D. Bueno, sí. Hay mucho más. Si quieres, echa un vistazo a mis libros
bestseller para estudiantes de inglés.
Han ayudado a miles de hispanohablantes a subirse de nivel, y tienen
valoraciones muy positivas de los lectores alrededor del mundo.