[Idiom] Had/have Better Beware

Nouf S · Oct 13, 2013

Hello there,

Hope you are well.

I was confronted with this sentence " A flay that lands on a Venus Flytrap had better beware."
My question is: is this an idiom and what does it mean? and is it used with "had or have" interchangeably?

I appreciate your efforts.
Thank you very much.

emsr2d2 · Oct 13, 2013

Nouf S said:
Hello there,

[strike]Hope you are well. [/strike] Unnecessary

I was confronted with this sentence "A [strike]flay[/strike] fly that lands on a Venus Flytrap had better beware."
My question is: is this an idiom and what does it mean, and is it used with "had" or "have" interchangeably?

[strike]I appreciate your efforts.
Thank you very much.[/strike] Unnecessary

It's not an idiom. Do you understand what "beware" means?

Nouf S · Oct 13, 2013

Thank you for editing (though I think you will cross it

)

Yes I know what "beware" means, but I'm confused because the past tens was used "had better beware". The context suggests tht it is done and the fly will be aeten definatly. If I'm wrong then, is it used with "had" or "have" interchangeably?

Tdol · Oct 13, 2013

Had better is used in present time with a meaning like a strong form of should.

engee30 · Oct 13, 2013

Had better beware is an expression of warning. Had better is often reduced to better, especially in spoken English.
Well, it's got nothing to do with tenses. Its form always takes had. To me, you could actually say it is some kind of idiomatic phrase.

Raymott · Oct 13, 2013

Nouf S said:
If I'm wrong then, is it used with "had" or "have" interchangeably?

Nothing is used with 'had' or 'have' interchangeably.

[Idiom] Had/have Better Beware

Nouf S

New member

emsr2d2

Moderator

Nouf S

New member

Tdol

No Longer With Us (RIP)

engee30

Key Member

Raymott

VIP Member

Similar threads