Gramática › Modal Verbs "have to/must/should"
Must, have to y should: frases afirmativas
480 ejercicios de huecos, 48 tests de diez
Must y should no llevan -s ni to. Have to pasa a has to y se comporta como un verbo normal.
Practica esta forma
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Preparando tu primera pregunta.
De dónde viene la obligación
La prueba clásica es quién la impone:
- I must call my mother. — lo he decidido yo; nadie me obliga.
- I have to renew my passport. — lo exigen las normas.
Las dos son correctas en casi cualquier frase, y los estadounidenses usan have to en casi todas. Donde la diferencia se ve clara es en carteles y reglamentos, que llevan must: Passengers must show a ticket.
should para el consejo
Should no obliga a nadie. Da una opinión sobre lo mejor:
You should take the earlier flight.
Hay versiones más fuertes: ought to significa lo mismo y es algo más formal; had better lleva una advertencia dentro: You had better leave now da a entender que si no, pasa algo malo.
have got to
En inglés británico hablado, have got to sustituye a have to:
I*’ve got to** go.*
No tiene pasado, así que had to cubre el pasado de los dos.
should have
Para decir qué habría sido mejor en el pasado:
You should have told me. — no lo hiciste, y fue un error.
Dónde se tuerce para un hispanohablante
«Debo» y «tengo que» se traducen casi solos, y esa intuición funciona. Lo que hay que recordar es que have to se conjuga (he has to) y must no.
«Tuve que» y «tendré que». Must no tiene ni pasado ni futuro: son had to y will have to.
Y «deberías haberme dicho» es You should have told me, con have más participio, igual que el condicional compuesto español.
Todas las formas
| Sujeto | must | have to | should |
|---|---|---|---|
| I, you, we, they | must go | have to go | should go |
| he, she, it | must go | has to go | should go |
| pasado | had to go | had to go | should have gone |
| futuro | will have to go | will have to go | should go |
Ejemplos
Tomados de las 480 frases de este ejercicio. La respuesta va resaltada.
- The system logs every arrival, so employees have to be at work on time.
- Even where nobody is watching, people should follow traffic rules for their safety.
- I am telling you plainly: you must keep this secret!
- The law is plain: he has to be responsible for his own actions.
- The office closes at six sharp, so employees have to complete their daily tasks before leaving.
- Nobody is forcing us, but we should try our best to achieve our goals.
- The school charter binds us: we must be respectful to our teachers.
- His position obliges him, so he has to be careful with his words.
- A patrol checks it at every junction, so you have to wear a seatbelt while driving.
- Nobody is forcing you, but you should eat a balanced diet for good health.
- The traffic here is deadly: he must be careful while crossing the road.
- The company fines latecomers, so he has to arrive on time for the meeting.
Errores que evitar
Incorrecto: He have to leave now. correcto: He has to leave now.
Have to no es un modal: cambia para he, she e it.
Incorrecto: Yesterday I must work late. correcto: Yesterday I had to work late.
Must no tiene forma de pasado. Se usa had to.