# have to

Pronunciation: say "HAF tuh" /ˈhæf tə/

## Verb

1. To be required, obliged or strongly urged to do something, or to need to do it; used to express obligation.
   - Simple: To need to do something because a rule, a person or a strong feeling makes you.
   - _All visitors have to sign in at the front desk._
   - _She had to leave work early to pick up her son from daycare._
2. Used with be to state a conclusion that seems logically certain.
   - Simple: Used with be to say you are sure something is true, because it makes sense.
   - _Someone's knocking at this hour? That has to be your brother._
   - _You've been working since six this morning, so you have to be exhausted._

## Origin

Goes back at least to the Old English construction habban + tō, which already expressed obligation.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/have-to (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).