I must/have to make sure I wake up ...

[Ola Swensson]

Hello!

In my CAE Student's book I have to complete these sentences.
Could you tell me please whether I can use both "must" and "have to" here?

"I must/have to make sure I wake up in time for my first lecture".

"Our lecturers have told us that we have to send them our assingments by email, otherwise they won't mark them. This means we have to/must have our own email".

Thank you so much in advance!

 

[Tarheel]

Hello!

In my CAE Student's book I have to complete these sentences.
Could you tell me please whether I can use EITHER "must" OR "have to" here?

"I must/have to make sure I wake up in time for my first lecture".

"Our lecturers have told us that we have to send them our assingments by email, otherwise they won't mark them. This means we have to/must have our own email".

[]

Like you, I have a hard time telling the difference between "must" and "have to".

Do you have a spell checker on your device?

 

[jutfrank]

Can you show us the exercise? Or at least cite the title, edition and page number?

 

[Ola Swensson]

Thank you for your answers!

The book is "Complete Advanced", Cambridge English, C1, by Guy Brook-HArt and Simon Haines, 2nd edition, 2015, p. 117.

 

[emsr2d2]

Thank you for your answers!

The book is "Complete Advanced", Cambridge English, C1, by Guy Brook-HArt and Simon Haines, 2nd edition, 2015, p. 117.

Please remember to put the source information in post #1, every time you quote someone else's work.

 

[Ola Swensson]

I will emsr2d2!

Do you think it would be possible to use both "must" and "have to" in my sentences?

 

[Tarheel]

You could use either one. (Why you would want use both I have no idea.)

Did you totally ignore my post (#2)?

@Ola Swensson To tag somebody put the "at sign" in front of the username.

 

[jutfrank]

Here are the forms I'd use:

2) I need to make sure I wake up in time for my first lecture.

3) Our lecturers have told us that we have to send them our assingments by email, otherwise they won't mark them. This means we must have our own email.


In case forum members want to have a go at this exercise:

 

[Ola Swensson]

Sorry @Tarheel, I didn't mean to be impolite. I just saw your message as an indirect way to tell me about my grammar mistakes. That's why I thought it didn't need an answer...
To answer your question, yes, I have a spell checker.

 

[Ola Swensson]

Thank you very much jutfrank!

 

[5jj]

1) I need to make sure I wake up in time for my first lecture.

That is fine, but the learner is required to choose between must and have io.

3) Our lecturers have to told us that we have to send them our assignments by email, otherwise they won't mark them. This means we must have our own email.

OK, but the other form is possible in each case.

 

[jutfrank]

That is fine, but the learner is required to choose between must and have io.

Not so. Read the instructions.

OK, but the other form is possible in each case.

Um, yes, I do understand the task, thank you. However, I don't think it really matters greatly what is "possible" ultimately. It's more important to find the best answer. I gave the answers that occur to me as the best ones. I genuinely wonder what other members would use, which is why I posted the exercise.

 

[5jj]

I think that questions such as those above are pointless, because there is an argument for both 'must' and 'have to' in both gaps.

A further complication with these two verbs is that many Americans appear not to use 'must', so the difference felt by some native speakers is unreal for others.

For many speakers of BrE, 'must' suggests an obligation imposed by the speaker, 'have to' an obligation imposed by somebody else:

Teacher: You must do this homework tonight. (I, the teacher, impose the obligation.

Mother: You have to do this homework tonight. (The teacher has imposed this obligation, not I, the mother).

Even this difference is not always observed when the subject is 'I'. In an utterance such as "Sorry, I have to go now", the speaker may use 'have to' when there is no external obligation, to suggest a polite unwillingness to leave.


Some people appear to feel that 'must' is somehow stronger than 'have to'; however I have heard others claim that 'have to is stronger than 'must', so that's no help.

, I don't think it really matters greatly what is "possible" ultimately. It's more important to find the best answer.

That is sometimes a matter of opinion.

 

[Ola Swensson]

OK, but the other form is possible in each case.

Thank you @5jj for your detailed reply! It helped me enormously! That is exactly what I wanted to know! In fact, I know the correct answers, but our Student's book doesn't give all the possible options. So I'm a bit at a loss, when the book suggests only "must" as a key answer, as if "have to" was incorrect. That is why I asked my initial question.

Now I understand that in the second sentence we can use both forms, depending on the context.
Is it the same when it comes to the first sentence? Would it be correct to use "have to" here:

"I have to make sure I wake up in time for my first lecture".

If I understand what you have said, it is a possible option here. Am I right?

@jutfrank, thank you once again for your answer and for posting this exercise for all forum members! Your choice of the verbs has made it clear for me that I shouldn't always rely on key answers in my book, because the authors of it have chosen other forms as the "best" ones ))).

 

[Tarheel]

 

[Ola Swensson]

Dear @Tarheel,
Why are you so sad? I hope I didn't bless you...

 

[teechar]

I hope I didn't bless you...

That doesn't make sense. Can you rephrase it?

 

[Ola Swensson]

Oh, yes... I mean "I hope I didn't hurt/offended you".
Sorry, I applied a French word.

 

[5jj]

Oh, yes... I mean "I hope I didn't hurt/offended you".
Sorry, I applied used a French word.

See above.