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Speaker 1: Do you ever feel like English has just too many

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ways to say the same thing. Maybe you've wondered why

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English has have to, must, need to, and I'm supposed

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to when they all seem to mean something like I

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should do this, like I have to work late, I

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must finish this, I need to call her, I'm supposed

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to send the email. All of those sound similar, but

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native speakers use them in different situations, and each one

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has a slightly different feeling. If you always use just

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one of them, your English can sound a little stiff,

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or that textbook English feeling can creep in. So today

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let's break these down and look at how native speakers

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really use them in everyday conversation.

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Speaker 2: Welcome to another Happy English podcast, coming to you from

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New York City, and here's your English teacher, Michael.

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Speaker 1: All right, thank you John, and thanks everyone. It's Michael

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here from Happy English and I help people speak English better.

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And this is Happy English Podcast, Episode nine sixty eight,

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talking about obligation in English. Have to, must, need to,

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and suppose to. Today we'll look at four very common

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ways to talk about obligation, rules and expectations, and you'll

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hear how each one sounds a little different, even though

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they're all connected to the topic of things we should do.

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Let's start with have too. Have to is probably the

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most common and the most neutral. We use it for rules, responsibilities,

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and things that are necessary, especially when the reason comes

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from outside us. For example, I have to work tomorrow.

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That's not a personal opinion, it's just a fact. Or

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I have to pay my rent by Friday. George works

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in a factory, so he has to wear a helmet

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at work. Native speakers use have to all the time

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in daily conversations. I notice this. Even though have to

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looks like a present tense verb, we use it in

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all tenses, like I had to leave early or I

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have to call her later. Next, let's talk about must.

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Must is stronger than have to, but it's also used

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less often in conversation. When we use must, it usually

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sounds very strong, very serious, or very formal, like you

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must wear a seat belt, or you must show your ID.

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You'll see must a lot when there's a rule or

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a sign, and in announcements or written instructions. In everyday conversation,

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Native speakers don't use must very much unless they want

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to sound dramatic, serious, or very clear. Sometimes must comes

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from the speaker's personal feeling, like I must talk to

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her today. That sounds emotional, like it's very important. But

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in casual daily talk we usually prefer have to instead

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of must, as in I have to talk to her today.

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By the way, sometimes we use must to make suggestions,

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like a new restaurant, a new movie, and so on.

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Someone may say, Oh, you must go see that new

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movie with Jack Black, it's hilarious, or you must try

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that new Mexican restaurant in town the food is amazing.

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Notice that in both of those examples I stressed the

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word must, and using must this way does have a

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formal or sophisticated sound to it. That's why when making suggestions,

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we also prefer have to instead of must, as in

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you have to go see that new movie it's hilarious.

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Let's get back to talking about obligation with need to.

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Need to is softer than must, and it focuses on importance,

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not rules. When you say need to, you're often talking

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about something that you feel is important, helpful, and even

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lodge go to do, Like I need to get more sleep.

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This isn't something the doctor told me. I feel it's necessary.

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Here are some other examples, we need to leave early

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if we want to catch the train, or you need

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to back up your computer. Need to sounds practical and reasonable,

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and need to doesn't sound like in order. It sounds

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like good advice, and just like have to, need to

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is very common in natural conversation. And finally, let's talk

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about be supposed to. This one is very important and

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very useful for talking about obligation. Be supposed to is

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not about rules or personal needs. It's about expectations. Be

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supposed to means this is what other people expect or

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this is the plan, even if it doesn't happen, like

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I'm supposed to meet Jenny at six point thirty tonight,

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or we're supposed to finish our homework by tomorrow, or

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I'm still waiting to hear from Jack. He's supposed to

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call me back. And here's something interesting. We often use

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be supposed to when something doesn't happen, like he was

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supposed to call but he didn't, or the train was

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supposed to arrive at nine but it's late again. So

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be supposed to is very common when we're talking about plans, expectations,

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and when we're making mild complaints based on those plans

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and expectations. So let's put this all together. We use

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have to when we talk about rules and real life possibilities.

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You have to wear a seatbelt when you drive. We

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use must when there are strong rules and laws. The

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sign says you must have a permit to go fishing

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in this lake. We use need to when we talk

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about importance and good judgment, like I need to start exercising.

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And finally, we use be supposed to when there are

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expectations and plans. You're supposed to study English every day

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in order to keep improving. That's why native speakers don't

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use just one word to talk about obligations. We choose

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based on the situation, not just the grammar. Let me

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ask you something before we wrap up. What's one thing

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you have to do this week? What's something you need

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to do soon? And is there anything you were supposed

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to do but you didn't try answering those out loud.

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That's how you build real fluency. And remember the best

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way to remember English like this and any other word

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or phrase in English is to take that word or phrase,

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write it in a sentence that's true for you or

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true in your world, and then memorize your sentences. That's

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how you build fluency. I suppose you were waiting for

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me to say that, Hey, thanks for listening, and remember,

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learning another language is not easy, but it's not impossible,

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and I'm here to help you on your journey.

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Speaker 2: This podcast is brought to you by Happy English. Please

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visit Myhappy English dot com. Show your support for Happy

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English by leading us a review Get English, Get Happy

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