must

Alternative forms

• mus'

Pronunciation

• (stressed) IPA^(key): /mʌst/
• (unstressed) IPA^(key): /məs(t)/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ʌst
• Homophone: mussed

Etymology 1

From Middle English moste ("must", literally, "had to", the past tense of Middle English moten (“to have to”)), from Old English mōste (“had to”), 1st & 3rd person singular past tense of mōtan (“to be allowed, be able to, have the opportunity to, be compelled to, must, may”). Cognate with Dutch moest (“had to”), German musste (“had to”), Swedish måste (“must, have to, be obliged to”). More at mote.

Verb

must (third-person singular simple present must, no present participle, simple past must, no past participle)

1. (modal auxiliary, defective) To do with certainty; indicates that the speaker is certain that the subject will have executed the predicate.

   If it has rained all day, it must be very wet outside.

   You picked one of two, and it wasn't the first: it must have been the second.

2. (modal auxiliary, defective) To do as a requirement; indicates that the sentence subject is required as an imperative or directive to execute the sentence predicate, with failure to do so resulting in a negative consequence.

   You must arrive in class on time. — the requirement is an imperative

   This door handle must be rotated fully. — the requirement is a directive

   Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do. (Bible, Acts 9:6)

3. (modal auxiliary, defective) said about something that is very likely, probable, or certain to be true

   The children must be asleep by now.

Usage notes

• (auxiliary, to do with certainty): Compare with weaker auxiliary verb should, indicating a strong probability of the predicate’s execution.
• (auxiliary, to do as a requirement): Compare with weaker auxiliary verb should, indicating mere intent for the predicate’s execution; and stronger auxiliary verb will, indicating that the negative consequence will be unusually severe.
• The past tense of “must” is also “must”. In main clauses, this use of the past tense is almost always literary (see King James Bible, Leiber, and Alcott quotations below). In subordinate clauses, it is more common: He knew what he must do. Otherwise, the past sense is usually conveyed by had to. It is possible to use be bound to for the past also. For this reason, have to and be bound to are also used as alternatives to must in the present and future.
• The principal verb, if easily supplied, may be omitted. In modern usage this is mainly literary (see Housman and Tolkien quotations below).
• Must is unusual in its negation. Must not still expresses a definite certainty or requirement. Need, on the other hand, is negated in the usual manner. Compare:

You must not read that book. (It is necessary that you not read that book.)

You need not read that book. (It is not necessary that you read that book.)

You need to not read that book. (It is necessary that you not read that book.)

• The second-person singular (thou being the subject) no longer adds -est (as it did in Old English).

Quotations

• 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], OCLC 964384981, Genesis 47:29:

  And the time drew nigh that Israel must die, and he called his sonne Ioseph, and said vnto him, If now I haue found grace in thy sight, put, I pray thee, thy hand vnder my thigh, and deale kindly and truely with mee, bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt.

• 1868, Louisa May Alcott, Little Women

  She had to wash the cups every morning, and polish up the old-fashioned spoons, the fat silver teapot, and the glasses till they shone. Then she must dust the room, and what a trying job that was.

• 1936, Alfred Edward Housman, More Poems, IX, lines 3-6

  Forth I wander, forth I must,

  And drink of life again.

  Forth I must by hedgerow bowers

  To look at the leaves uncurled

• 1937 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit

  We must away ere break of day

  To seek the pale enchanted gold.

• 1968 Fritz Leiber, Swords in the Mist

  Whereupon while one patched or napped, the other must stand guard against inquisitive two- and three-headed dragons and even an occasional monocephalic.

Translations

See also

• Appendix:English modal verbs
• Appendix:English tag questions

Noun

must (plural musts)

1. Something that is mandatory or required.

   If you'll be out all day, a map is a must.

Synonyms

• imperative

Antonyms

• no-no

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English must, from Old English must and Old French must, most, both from Latin mustum.

Noun

must (plural musts)

1. The property of being stale or musty.
2. Something that exhibits the property of being stale or musty.
3. Fruit juice that will ferment or has fermented, usually from grapes.
   • Henry Wadsworth Longfellow:

     No sweet grape lies hidden here in the shade of its vine-leaves,

     No fermenting must fills and o'erflows the deep vats.

Translations

Verb

must (third-person singular simple present musts, present participle musting, simple past and past participle musted)

1. (transitive) To make musty.
2. (intransitive) To become musty.

Further reading

• must on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Etymology 3

Persian مست‎ (mast, “drunk, inebriated”), from Middle Persian 𐭬𐭮𐭲‎ (mast).

Noun

must (plural musts)

1. A time during which male elephants exhibit increased levels of sexual activity and aggressiveness (also spelled musth).
   • 1936, George Orwell, Shooting an Elephant, an essay in the magazine New Writing:

     It was not, of course, a wild elephant, but a tame one which had gone ‘must’.

2. An elephant in this sexual and aggressive state.

Anagrams

• MTUs, UMTS, smut, stum, tums

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mʏst/

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

must m (uncountable)

1. necessity, prerequisite

   Een rijbewijs is een must als je taxichauffeur wil worden.

   A driver's license is a necessity if you want to be a taxi driver.

Etymology

From Proto-Finnic *musta. Cognate with Finnish musta, Veps must and Livonian mustā. Possibly from Proto-Germanic *mus-ta-, compare Norwegian Bokmål must (“steam, fume, mist”).^[1]

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmust/
• Hyphenation: must

Adjective

must (genitive musta, partitive musta, comparative mustem, superlative kõige mustem or mustim)

1. black (color)

   Lindude sulestik on must, aga tiibadel märkame valget laiku.

   The plumage of the birds is black, but you can notice a white spot on the wings.

2. Dark, without light, illumination (and poorly visible).

   Mustad sügisööd.

   Dark autumn nights.

   1. Without snow.

      Maa on must ja kelgutada ei saa.

      The ground is without snow and you can't go sledding.

3. Having dark skin.

   Must poiss muudkui naeris.

   The black kid kept laughing.

4. Dirty, unclean, full of garbage and/or grime.

   Mu riided said mustaks ja pidin neid pesema.

   My clothes became dirty and I had to wash them.

   1. Not requiring special skills, making something or someone dirty.

      Hauakaevaja must töö.

      The dirty job of a gravedigger.

   Synonym: räpane

5. Grim, dreary, hopeless, without any (good) solution.

   Meeleolu on must.

   The mood around here is dark.

   1. Illegal, unofficial, disgraceful.

      Kartsin, et mu mustad teod tulevad päevavalgele.

      I feared, that my dark acts will come to light.

Declension

Noun

must (genitive musta, partitive musta)

1. The color black.

   Halli värvi kombineerimine musta ja valgega suurendad enda usaldatavust.

   By combining gray with black and white, you increase your own reliability.

2. Something colored in black.

   Otsustasime, kumb mängib valgete, kumb mustadega.

   We decided, who plays with whites (white chesspieces), and who plays with blacks (black chesspieces).

3. A person having dark skin.

   Meie tulevikulootus ei ole enam lapsed, vaid hoopis mustad.

   Our hopes for the future aren't our children anymore, but blacks.

Declension

Antonyms

• valge

Derived terms

• mustus
• mustuma
• mustendama
• mustenma
• mustama

Related terms

• must auk
• mustvalge
• musträstas
• süsimust
• must sõstar

See also

References

Etymology 1

A variant of musta < minusta (“of me”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmust/, [ˈmus̠t̪]

Pronoun

must

1. (colloquial, eye dialect) elative singular of mä

   Must' on tärkeetä, että.. / Minusta on tärkeää, että... (standard)

   I think it is important that...

Etymology 2

Borrowed from English must.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɑst/, [ˈmɑs̠t̪]

Noun

must

1. (colloquial) must (something mandatory or required)

   Se on ihan must!

   It's a must!

Declension

• Not inflected.

Synonyms

• pakko; pakollinen juttu

Etymology

Borrowed from English must.

Noun

must m (plural musts)

1. (informal) that which is compulsory; an obligation; duty; must

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈmuʃt]
• Hyphenation: must

Noun

must (plural mustok)

1. must (sweet fresh grape juice that has not fermented yet)

Declension

Etymology

From Proto-Finnic *musta.

Adjective

must

1. black

Etymology

From Latin mustum, from Proto-Indo-European *mus-, *mews- (“damp”).

Noun

must n (plural musturi)

1. unfermented wine; grape or other fruit juice
2. must (of grapes)

Declension

Derived terms

Related terms

• mustos
• mustăreață

See also

• zeamă, suc

Etymology

From Old Norse muster, moster, from Latin mustum.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɵst/

Noun

must c (uncountable)

1. A kind of soft drink, more commonly known as julmust
3. Unfermented fruit juice

Declension

See also

• must on the Swedish Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^sv

Anagrams

• stum, tums

Etymology

From Proto-Finnic *musta.

Adjective

must

1. black

Inflection

Derived terms

• musteta
• Mustmägi
• mustsil'mäine
• mustverine

Noun

must

1. black

Inflection

References

• Zajceva, N. G.; Mullonen, M. I., “чёрный”, in Uz’ venä-vepsläine vajehnik / Novyj russko-vepsskij slovarʹ [New Russian–Veps Dictionary]‎^[1], Petrozavodsk: Periodika, 2007

Noun

must (nominative plural musts)

1. must (new wine; sweet cider)

Declension

Etymology

From Proto-Finnic *musta.

Adjective

must (genitive musta, partitive musta)

1. black (colour)

Inflection