Have to vs. Need to vs. Must - What's the difference in English? (Advanced English Grammar)

Hi, I'm Anne Marie with Speak Confident English and welcome to your Confident

English Wednesday lesson. Today I need to go to the store. Or I have to go to the

store. I must go to the store. What do you think? Are all of those sentences the

same? Do they mean the same thing with need to, have to, and must? Or are there

some differences in English?

If you're not sure, then be sure to watch today's lesson. We'll talk about how

English speakers use these in real life, so that you can use them in the same way.

Let's start by looking at need to because it's a little bit special, it's a

little bit different from have to and must. A few examples using need to

include: I need to get my haircut; it's out of control. Or I need to call my mom

on her birthday. She really needs to do well on her exam this week. In each of

those examples, when we say need to: I need to,

she needs to, it shows that something is important or it's something that we

should do. And that is the key. It is something that we should do or it's

important to us to do. She needs to do well on her exam this week because it's

important for her future. Maybe it's important for her opportunities to go to

a good university. I need to call my mom on her birthday because it's important

to me and yes, I should do it. It's the polite and loving thing to do to call my

mom on her birthday. Now let's look at how to and must

because there are many situations where both can be used and they have a lot of

similarities. So we'll start with how they are similar and we'll also look at

some differences. With have to and must we're expressing that something is an

obligation, that it's a necessity or responsibility or something that is

required. It's not just important, it is required. For example, I have to get to my

meeting on time or I'm must get to my meeting on time. When we

use those verbs, we're showing that it is an obligation, it is a necessity. Maybe if

I'm late to my meeting, my boss will be angry, maybe I'll get fired from my job

and I don't want to take that risk. It is not only important it is a necessity.

Another example is: you must have a passport to travel abroad or you have to

have a passport to travel abroad. In that situation, it's not only important but it

is a requirement. It's the law. You must or have to have a passport to travel to

another country. In those examples, must and have to are similar to need to but

they focus more or they have a feeling, a connotation of something that is an

obligation, it is a necessity. But we can also use must and have to in some other

similar ways. For example, both can be used to say that something is likely. For

example, maybe one day I go to my office, I walk in and I say oh my gosh it's so

cold in here! The heater has to be broken or the heater must be broken. In those

sentences I'm expressing the likelihood or that I think something is likely. It

is likely that the heater is broken. We also use must and have to

to show emphasis. Emphasis is when we use stress on a word or a syllable to show

its importance, its value. For example, I could say: call me after your exam. I'll

be really curious to know how it went. Or I could add

must or have to to show emphasis. That it's really important to me that you

call, that I truly am curious. For example, you must call me after your exam. I'm

going to be really curious to know how it went. Or you have to call me after

your exam. And finally both must and have to can be used to show that we really

desire something or we really want something. For example, I can say I must

have pizza on my birthday or I have to have pizza on my birthday. It's not

something I eat very often and I really want it on my birthday; it's something I

desire. It's definitely not a requirement. Well, maybe it's a requirement. But it is

something I desire and when I use must or have to it helps me express that. Now

that we've talked about how must and have two are very similar, let's look at

a few differences. Generally speaking, must is more formal which means we don't

use it as often in spoken situations or conversations. Now I did say generally

speaking. That means it's true in general. And there are always exceptions. There

are people who have different preferences when they speak, so you will

hear it in conversation and other speaking situations, but generally we use

have to when we're speaking. And again, generally speaking, I can say that

Americans tend to use have to. So if you're learning American English, you're

traveling to or living in the United States, then you will be more likely to

hear have to in conversations. Now we know that must and have to

both are used for obligation, necessity, and requirement. But is it

something that your boss said you have to do or is it something that you feel

you must do? Is it a rule at the university that you have to turn off

your phone during an exam or must you turn off your phone when you

study because it helps you stay focused? In those questions we're talking about

where or who the obligation comes from. Is it something coming from you, your own

personal obligation or is it an outside authority or rule? A university rule, a

workplace regulation, something your boss said you have to do. Another general rule -

remember general means most of the time but not all the time - must is often used

for those personal obligations. I must turn off my phone when I study because

it's too distracting. And have to is often used for outside authority or

rules. For example, you have to turn off your phone during exams because it's a

university rule or regulation. Okay, let's pause for a moment. How are you

doing? This lesson is a big lesson. There's a lot of information to think

about, a lot of general rules to remember. So let's pause relax for a moment. If you

need to, pause the video, think a little bit about what we've talked about and

then we have one final thing to discuss. Okay if you're ready to go, let's go on

to the very last part of our video. In all of the examples that we've discussed,

we've focused on positive sentences and in positive sentences need to have to

and must are often similar. Must and have to are more similar. But

what happens when we use those in a negative sentence? For example, you

mustn't smoke in the building. If I say you don't have to smoke in the building,

are those two sentences the same? Do they have the same meaning? You mustn't smoke

in the building. You don't have to smoke in the building. No. They definitely do

not have the same meaning and that can be tricky. In positive sentences they

seem very similar but when we use them in a negative form it completely changes

the meaning. When we use must not, it means that something is prohibited. It is

against the rules or against the law. You cannot do it. But if I use have to or

need to in the negative form, for example I don't have to or she doesn't need to,

it means it's your choice. There's no obligation.

There's no rule. It's up to you. So we can definitely say you mustn't smoke in the

building. It's prohibited. It's not allowed; it's unacceptable. Or we could

also say she mustn't be late again or she'll be fired. She mustn't be late

again or she'll be fired. But for have to or need to I could say, I'm so glad I

don't have to get up early on Saturdays or I'm so glad I don't need to get up

early on Saturdays. In those sentences I'm saying that it's my choice. There's

no time I have to get up. I can get up early if I

want. I can get up late if I want. It's my choice. Okay we are finally done with

this lesson and you made it to the end. I'm glad that you did. I know that these

can be really challenging so now I want you to get some practice so that it

becomes easier for you to use these more naturally, in the same ways that native

speakers often use them. In the online lesson, I have a few challenge questions

for you where I want you to create your own example sentences. Use your real-life

using these verbs in some of the situations that I've talked about in

this video. So I have four challenge questions for you in the online lesson.

Make sure that you take a look at those and then share your comments, your

thoughts, practice in the comment section at the bottom of the lesson. It's the

best place to join the discussion and get feedback from me every week. Thank

you so much for joining me. I look forward to seeing your answers to my

challenge questions. And I'll see you next week for your Confident English

Wednesday lesson.