As a learner of English, I’m absolutely confused at the ton of possibilities the English language has brought up just to express that someone “has to do” something. What is the difference then between
must | has (got) to | be bound to | get to | be obliged to
Like, is there a whatever so subtle difference between: I must go vs. I have (got) to go vs. I’m bound to go vs. I get to go vs. I’m obliged to go
20 comments
Most people use have to/has to; ‘be bound to’ and ‘be obliged to’ are grammatically correct, but pretty much aren’t used…ever. Probably in writing/acting if an actor is trying to come off as posh or pretentious (or someone is failing to write in a Shakespearean or Victorian era-accent)
“Get to” is sometimes casually used as a substitute, or to signify something in the far vague future (i.e. “I have to get to the hardware store at some point.”)
“Must go”, “has to go”, “bound to go” sorta implies that outside forces are requiring you to do something. “Get to go” or “obliged to go” implies that you want to do it so it’s seen as a good opportunity to do that. I must go to jury duty. I have to go to jury duty. I’m bound to go to jury duty. I get to go to Europe on vacation.
Got to is nearly the opposite of get to, so that would be confusing. Got to is have to or must. Get to is able to or can.
“Got to (gotta)” is the most informal and casual way of expressing an obligatory action.
“Have to” is the most neutral and common imo.
“Obliged to” sounds more formal, but can be more common casually in certain dialects. If you stick with have to or got to you’ll generally be just fine.
“Get to” has a somewhat different meaning. To me it kinda implies that there is a boon, good opportunity, or otherwise desired outcome to the speaker, that also is not necessarily mandatory (I get to go to Disneyland this summer – To my benefit/elation I have the opportunity to go to Disneyland).
It can be used to imply an obligation though, although this comes across kind of sarcastically:
“What am I doing today boss?”
“Congrats! You get to mop the floors!”
The implication of “getting to do X,” becomes juxtaposed here with the fact that it’s an obligatory undesirable task.
These are similar, but will vary by context and tone. However, here’s how I see them generally. Almost all of them, flip the tone and it means the opposite.
“I get to go to the game later!”
and
“I get to go to the dentist later…”
have two very different meanings.
>I must go
Usually means I’m required by forces out of my control.
>I have (got) to go
If its a good thing this could be excitement or if its not its the same as above.
>I’m bound to go
Its inevitable whether I like it or not.
>I get to go
Usually means a positive and you are excited to go.
>I’m obliged to go
Obligated to go, though sometimes its not really a negative. More a duty.
I must go vs. I have (got) to go are the same thing, just a difference in formality. “I have (got) to go” is informal. “It’s getting late and the babysitter is waiting. I (must/have to) go home to the kids”
In the same vein, “I’m bound to go” and “I’m obliged (the more correct word would be “obligated”) are roughly the same, meaning that you have a specific “social contract” reason for going. “I’m (bound to/obligated to) go to my spouse’s annoying friend’s party.”
“I get to go” means that you’re allowed to go somewhere. “I get to go to the concert as a thank you for taking my spouse to their annoying friend’s party.”
IMO, the verb “to get” is the hardest word in the English language. It is used in so many informal and idiomatic ways that do not make sense if translated literally.
Here’s my take on your question. I’m going to substitute “to read” for “to go” in my example. It’s a simpler verb than “to go.” A lot of the nuance is contextual and there can be formal and informal uses.
* I have to read the book.
* I must read the book
* I’m bound to read the book
* I get to read the book.
* I’m obliged to read the book
* I need to read the book.
* I’m obligated to read the book.
Most of these phrases can be used interchangeably. And many of the phrases imply that the need to complete the action is imposed by someone else.
Example, “I have to read the book for class.” You could substitute “need, obliged, must, have to, and obligated” without much change to the meaning. It’s a requirement to read the book for the class. Although “obligated” or “obliged” sounds more formal. Oh, and the usage is pretty neutral in terms of whether or not the task is positive or negative.
“I get to read the book for class” shifts the meaning to a more positive note. It’s a requirement but I’m looking forward to the task.
“I need to read the book” is also neutral but has more urgency attached to the meaning.
But, there are some informal uses as well that vary based on context and emphasis. There’s a colloquial usage with a strong emphasis on “I HAVE to read that book” that could be used to when talking about a popular book that everyone wants to read.
It’s complex and someone else may be able to explain this more clearly
tl;dr: it’s subtle, complex and contextual
People don’t really say “be bound to” unless it’s in a legal context, and even then it’s in pretty specific cases, like describing a contract as “legally binding”. You’d never say “I have to go to the grocery store, I have been bound to go get milk.” It makes you sound like someone from the Middle Ages going on a quest.
That being said, people will use the phrase “bound” to mean “very likely”, as in “you’re bound to find something good at that store”.
You also generally wouldn’t say “must” in a casual way. No one will say “I must go the bathroom.”, or “I must stop by the hardware store on the way home”. You’ll be understood, but it’s not something a native speaker would say.
“I get to go” implies it’s something you’re being allowed the opportunity to do by someone else. For example, “Because I finished all my work, my boss said I get to go home early today!”
“I’m obligated to” can imply that you wouldn’t necessarily do it of your own free will, but will be doing it regardless. Saying “I’m obligated to tell my boss if I’m going to be late” is normal, but you wouldn’t tell your girlfriend “I’m obligated to pay for your movie ticket.” unless you want her to think that you don’t really want to pay for it.
Must is similar to müssen.
– he must – er muss
– we must – wir müssen
– you (plural) must – ihr müsst
– I must – ich muss
When I first started learning German, I had trouble with all the different ways you could word a phrase. It was overwhelming until I decided to use only one.
“I get to go” is like “I have the opportunity to go”, it doesn’t express obligation. “I am bound to go” is not something someone would say in English. I mean people would understand that you mean “I have to go” but it’s an unnatural formation. The other three examples you listed are all equivalent imo.
* “I get to go” would be the least binding. In many cases this just means you have the opportunity to do something with the implication that the choice is yours: “I don’t have work today, that means I get to go to the park.”
* “I have to go” and “I must go” are stronger and can be binding or not binding depending on the context. “I am out of milk, I have to (must) go to the store to get some more.” It’s not binding, it’s not compulsory that you go to the store but if you want more milk, you will go to the store. “Got to” (or gotta) is commonly used here.
* “I’m bound to” or “I’m obliged to” usually means there’s some agreement–legal or otherwise–that binds you to the action. It’s pretty strong language. “I’m obliged to let you know that I’m not a real doctor.” or “I’m bound by the terms of the contract.”
It does get more complicated because you can use these terms colloquially to mean different things.
“must” is pretty formal and even a little aggressive. “You must go to the store” is an order, a directive. “I must go to the store” just isn’t used and would catch people off guard if you said it. Do bear in mind though that a lot of this can change based on context. If someone says “I must go to the store” in broken English with an accent people will recognize that you’re not a native speaker and will understand what you mean.
“Has got to” and “has to” mean the same thing and are more informal. The “got” is sometimes added for emphasis, “has to” is more common. “she has *got* to get her shit together” means she *really* has to get her shit together.
“To be bound” is incredibly formal and is rarely used. You’d be most likely to see it in legal documents, contracts, etc. It’s not really used besides that.
“Get to” isn’t really a synonym here. It can be used as meaning actual movement “I have to get to the store” or as something you’re excited about doing “I get to go to the zoo”
“Be obliged to” is also more formal and less common conversationally. It kind of means you’re *required* to do something, where “has to” is less of a requirement. You wouldn’t say “I am obliged to go to the store” because you aren’t being forced to go to the store, it’s just something you *should* do but not an absolute requirement.
“I must go.” – that sounds very formal to my ears, maybe even old-fashioned. For me, I use must in sentences like “I must have forgotten the book when I walked out the door. Dang it.”
“I have to go.” “I gotta go.” Very natural, everyday speech.
“I’m bound to go.” – Sounds incomplete. “I’m bound to go crazy if I hear that one more time.” It’s the equivalent of “I’m going to go…” but in an abstract way. I wouldn’t say “I’m bound to go to the store.” You can say “I’m bound for the store.” But that sounds odd though completely correct. I hear this word most often in religious settings “I’m bound for heaven.” (usually in hymns).
“I get to go.” – “I get to go to Disney world!” Used for something you’re excited for or used sarcastically for something you’re not. “I get to get a root canal. Yay.”
“I’m obliged to go…” I’d say “I’m obligated to go.” Same as “have to” but does feel stronger for me.
How I commonly interpret these phrases.
**must** – This implies that not taking the action will result in highly undesirable consequences, and you don’t have much say in the decision. The source of the consequences may be self-enforced, a force of nature, or imposed by someone else. (e.g. I must pay for my car to repaired or else I won’t be able to use it.)*
**has to** – This usually implies that not taking the action will result in undesirable consequences due to someone holding you accountable to the action. (e.g. I have to clean my room or else my mom will ground me.)*
**be obliged to** – This implies you’re performing an action out of social obligation. The action may be something you want to do or don’t want to do. (e.g. My friend asked me to go to a party that I don’t feel like attending, but I’m obliged to go because they’re my friend.)
**be bound to** – This is rarely used, and most often it’s used in books/movies set in the fantasy world or medieval time. It implies that you’re obligated to fulfill the action out of expected social duty, an oath, etc.
**get to** – This is typically used sarcastically. It has the same meaning as any of the above, but it’s a way to make light of having to do something that you don’t want to do. If used sincerely, it means that you actually want to do the action while at the same time having to do it.
* There is also a slight different level between “must” and “has to.” “Must” implies that you feel like that there is almost no ability for you to decide to do the action because of the severity of the consequences. “Has to” implies that you still feel like you could say no and decide to face the consequences, but you’d prefer not to.
You forgot “shall” which is very common in contracts and engineering requires.
I’m seeing people give you a lot of inaccurate advice about “bound to”. It is more formal to say lay “I am bound by contract”. There is also a more informal use of “bound to” which means that something is inevitable. You’ll hear it a lot for abstract things like “with all the snow, we are bound to have a snow day at some point” or “I heard so much about you. We were bound to meet soon”
I gotta go – I’m going and I’m not telling you why
I have to go – I’m going, and not telling you why but in a more forceful, formal way
I’m bound to go – depends on context here. it means “I’m going to end up going, I just know it”, but I think you’re using a version of bound that we don’t really use anymore. Don’t say this, it sounds weird if you’re using bound as a synonym for obliged
I’m obliged to go – I’m going and I’m giving you the reason, I have prior commitments that must be kept. OR I’m going because our social norms demand I go, if I don’t it’ll be seen as rude
I hope I don’t muddy the waters here. To indicate that someone absolutely has to make sure something happens use the word “shall”
My German teacher pointed out that “must” is a “defective” verb in English since its past tense form has been lost. It’s cognate with German “müssen” but we don’t have the equivalent to “musste.” So we end up with the odd situation of “You must do this now; I had to do it in the past.”
I never realize how complicated English is until I have to explain something to a non-native speaker. Good on you for sticking with it! 🙂