Let's see what comes to mind first — no notes, and mistakes are completely fine here.
You already know one of today's words. Complete this sentence:
"Sorry, I can't stay — I pick my daughter up at three."
Say out loud: one thing you have to do today, and one thing you have to do every single week, whether you like it or not.
Sam: Are you coming to the gym at seven?
Priya: I can't — I have to finish this report tonight, my manager wants it by nine tomorrow. I don't usually have to work evenings, but this week's different.
Look at how Priya explains herself. The report isn't a personal rule of hers — it's her manager who's decided it. Why do you think she chooses "have to" here rather than "must"? Say your idea out loud before you check.
Both mean "it's necessary" — but who's making the rule changes which one sounds natural.
Three things people say about obligation:
Before you check: in which sentences is the rule coming from the speaker's own feeling, and in which is it an outside rule or fact? Say it before you look.
Same rule — but a friend telling you about it in conversation reaches for "has to", not "must". Notice too: there's no "must to" — after must, the verb is bare, no "to".
Complete each sentence with the more natural choice.
1. Your friend's landlord requires all tenants to give one month's notice before moving out.
Explain the rule to someone else: "Apparently you give one month's notice before you move out."
2. You feel a strong personal urge to apologise to a friend you argued with — nobody is forcing you, it's just weighing on your conscience.
Say it to yourself: "I apologise to her, I feel terrible about what I said."
Say two things out loud: one rule at your job or in your building that comes from someone else ("I have to..."), and one thing you feel you personally must do this week, just for yourself.
These two look similar but mean opposite things — one of the most common mix-ups at this level.
Two flatmates talking about the flat:
Which one means "it's not necessary, it's your choice", and which one means "this is forbidden, don't do it"? Decide before you check.
Two more everyday phrases for the same territory:
1. The office cleaner comes every evening, so nobody in the team needs to tidy their own desk.
Tell a new colleague: "Relax — you tidy your desk, the cleaner does it every evening."
2. The swimming pool has a strict rule: absolutely no running on the wet tiles, it's dangerous.
Warn a child: "You run here, the floor's really slippery."
3. Your friend keeps saying she'll hand in the form by Friday, but she still hasn't done it — that was the plan, and it hasn't happened.
Point it out gently: "You hand it in by Friday — what happened?"
Think of a place with rules — a library, a workplace, someone's house. Say one thing you're not allowed to do there, and one thing you don't have to do there, even though people sometimes assume you do.
For advice about the past — something didn't happen the way it should have, and now it's too late to change it.
Three moments of hindsight:
What's the structure, and is the speaker talking about now or about the past? Say it before you check.
Watch the participle: not "should have tell" and not "should have told" spelled as "should have telled" — the verb goes into its past-participle form, the same one you'd use after "have" anywhere else.
1. Your friend didn't bring an umbrella and got soaked walking home in the rain.
Tell them afterwards: "You an umbrella — the forecast said rain all day."
2. You spent your whole Saturday on your phone instead of finishing the project that's now overdue.
Admit it to yourself: "I so much time on my phone — now I'm behind."
Think of a small mistake from the last few weeks — missing a bus, forgetting something, saying the wrong thing. Say out loud: "I should have..." or "I shouldn't have..." and explain what you'd do differently.
Time to bring rules, permission and regret together in one real story. You do the talking.
Think of a place you know well — your workplace, a flat you've shared, a gym, a school. (If nothing comes to mind, invent one.)
Talk about it out loud for one minute. Try to cover:
Write a short message (3–5 sentences) to a friend describing the same place and its rules. Use as many of today's forms as you can — the checker will tell you which ones it finds.
Real life doesn't sort itself into neat categories. Here everything is mixed — you decide what's right.
Each sentence has one grammar mistake. Rewrite the whole sentence correctly.
1. "I must to finish this by Friday, my manager set the deadline."
2. "I don't must work this Saturday, so I'm free."
3. "Guests supposed to check out by eleven, but hardly anyone actually does."
4. "You should have tell me the meeting moved — I waited outside for twenty minutes!"
5. Your friend keeps apologising for arriving without a gift to a casual dinner at your place. You say: "Honestly, you ___ bring anything — it's just a normal dinner, don't worry about it."
6. A sign at the swimming pool reads: "Children under 12 ___ be supervised by an adult at all times." A strict, non-negotiable safety rule.
7. You missed your train because you left home at the last possible minute, as usual. Looking back, you say: "I ___ earlier — I always cut it too close."
One-minute challenge: imagine you're showing a new flatmate around the flat. Explain out loud what they have to do, what they're not allowed to do, and what they don't have to worry about. Use the timer above if you like the pressure.
1. A form you knew before today — complete it: "If I more time, I would learn another language." (an unreal, imagined situation)
2. Say it out loud: what's the difference between "I used to go running" and "I go running"? Give an example of each.
3. A company policy, decided by head office, not by your own preference: everyone must wear a badge in the building. Explain it to a visitor: "You wear a visitor badge while you're in the building — it's head office policy."
4. The museum is free on Sundays, so nobody needs to buy a ticket that day. Tell a friend: "You buy a ticket on Sundays, it's free."
5. Your colleague forgot to save the document before the laptop crashed, and lost hours of work. Say it kindly: "You the document more often — that's such bad luck."
Which practice helped you most today — fixing the mistakes, choosing the right form, or the speaking tasks? Say why you think that one worked for you.
At the start we said: today's forms so you can talk about rules, permission and regrets the way people actually do. Tick what's true:
Next lesson: It Must Be, It Can't Be: Working Things Out — using must and can't to guess and work things out, not just to talk about obligation.