had, to be
IdiomsExample Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
My mother came out with me, Louis came out with me, my sister came out with me, and it was incredibly true: I had to be working or else I would die.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026
The bulk of the canal's construction work involved widening, deepening and modifying existing waterways, while a small section had to be excavated, Xinhua said.
From Barron's ● Sep. 16, 2026
As they continued to gather intelligence from Kuzichkin, Mr. McCredie and his superiors knew that they had to be extremely cautious.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
While people were grieving and exhausted, critical financial obligations had to be reconstructed, verified and settled.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
And there was some paradox he remembered hearing about, something about a grandmother—oh, yeah, time travel had to be impossible because, otherwise, you could go back in time and kill your own grandmother.
From "Found" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
