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Fandorin Posted 16 years ago
Grammar
Need and have to
Hi guys. I have a question I'd like you to answer. Yesterday I had a conversation while one of my friends say : "I apologise, I have to go." My friend made a decision all of a sudden, I shall say. I proposed that he say : "I apologise, I need (to) go". Having done that, I was told that I was completely wrong. I know we use "have to" when describing situation in which we should do something because of some rules, laws, regulations or another necessity. Michaels Swan's book says that "need to" can be used for conveying immediate necessity. In situation I described above, we can substitute "have to" for "need", can't we? And I would say "need to" is more preferable because my friend had an opportunity to choose. Thanks in advance, dear teachers.
Top answer
Yes, you can. In situations of this sort, 'have to' = 'need to' . I don't find one preferable over the other, however; they are both common and essentially synonymous in intent.
- Yes, you can.
- In situations of this sort, 'have to' = 'need to' .
- I don't find one preferable over the other, however; they are both common and essentially synonymous in intent.
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2 Answers
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Yes, you can. In situations of this sort, 'have to' = 'need to'. I don't find one preferable over the other, however; they are both common and essentially synonymous in intent.
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I have won the battle.
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