must

¹

[ muhst ]

auxiliary verb

1. to be obliged or bound to by an imperative requirement:

   I must keep my word.

2. to be under the necessity to; need to:

   Animals must eat to live.

3. to be required or compelled to, as by the use or threat of force:

   You must obey the law.

4. to be compelled to in order to fulfill some need or achieve an aim:

   We must hurry if we're to arrive on time.

5. to be forced to, as by convention or the requirements of honesty:

   I must say, that is a lovely hat.

6. to be or feel urged to; ought to:

   I must buy that book.

7. to be reasonably expected to; is bound to:

   It must have stopped raining by now. She must be at least 60.

8. to be inevitably certain to; be compelled by nature:

   Everyone must die.

verb (used without object)

1. to be obliged; be compelled:

   Do I have to go? I must, I suppose.

2. Archaic. (sometimes used with ellipsis of go, get, or some similar verb readily understood from the context):

   We must away.

adjective

1. necessary; vital:

   A raincoat is must clothing in this area.

noun

1. something necessary, vital, or required:

   This law is a must.

must

²

[ muhst ]

noun

1. new wine; the unfermented juice as pressed from the grape or other fruit.

must

³

[ muhst ]

noun

1. mold; moldiness; mustiness:

   a castle harboring the must of centuries.

must

⁴

[ muhst ]

noun

1. musk, especially a powder made from musk.

verb (used with object)

1. to powder (the hair).

must

¹

/ mʌst /

noun

1. a variant spelling of musth

must

²

/ məst; mʌst; məs /

verb

1. used as an auxiliary to express obligation or compulsion: you must pay your dues . In this sense, must does not form a negative. If used with a negative infinitive it indicates obligatory prohibition
2. used as an auxiliary to indicate necessity

   I must go to the bank tomorrow

3. used as an auxiliary to indicate the probable correctness of a statement

   he must be there by now

4. used as an auxiliary to indicate inevitability

   all good things must come to an end

5. used as an auxiliary to express resolution
   1. on the part of the speaker when used with I or we

      I must finish this

   2. on the part of another or others as imputed to them by the speaker, when used with you, he, she, they, etc

      let him get drunk if he must

6. used emphatically used as an auxiliary to express conviction or certainty on the part of the speaker

   you must be joking

   he must have reached the town by now, surely

7. foll by away used with an implied verb of motion to express compelling haste

   I must away

noun

1. an essential or necessary thing

   strong shoes are a must for hill walking

must

³

/ mʌst /

noun

1. mustiness or mould

must

⁴

/ mʌst /

noun

1. the newly pressed juice of grapes or other fruit ready for fermentation

must-

⁵

combining_form

1. indicating that something is highly recommended or desirable

   a must-see film

   this season's must-haves

Word History and Origins

Origin of must¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English most(e), Old English mōste (past tense); cognate with German musste. See mote ²

Origin of must²

First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English, from Latin mustum, short for vīnum mustum “new wine”

Origin of must³

First recorded in 1595–1605; back formation from musty ¹

Origin of must⁴

First recorded in 1480–90; earlier moist, from Middle French must, variant of musc; musk

Word History and Origins

Origin of must¹

Old English mōste past tense of mōtan to be allowed, be obliged to; related to Old Saxon mōtan, Old High German muozan, German müssen

Origin of must²

C17: back formation from musty

Origin of must³

Old English, from Latin mustum new wine, must, from mustus (adj) newborn

Idioms and Phrases

see a must ; show must go on .

Synonym Study

Must, ought, should express necessity or duty. Must expresses necessity or compulsion: I must attend to those patients first. Soldiers must obey orders. Ought (weaker than must ) expresses obligation, duty, desirability: You ought to tell your mother. Should expresses obligation, expectation, or probability: You are not behaving as you should. Children should be taught to speak the truth. They should arrive at one o'clock.

Example Sentences

Ohio is a must-win swing state for Republicans if they are to reclaim the White House.

From The Daily Beast

During the Showtime era, Lakers games became a must-see event that attracted fans and celebrities alike.

From The Daily Beast

In other words, this book is a must-read for every U.S. citizen.

From The Daily Beast

Meyers still has a way to go if he wants to make his new weeknight gig must-see daily viewing.

From The Daily Beast

It's now a must-have wardrobe staple, similar to that of the t-shirt or a pair of jeans.

From The Daily Beast

All of a sudden the Writer and the Sketcher found themselves thrust into the presence of He-who-must-be-obeyed.

From Project Gutenberg

All of a sudden, with one accord, they put to the Sphinx the question that He-who-must-be-obeyed had asked them.

From Project Gutenberg

Had not He-who-must-be-obeyed ordered them to seek out the solution of the Great Conundrum?

From Project Gutenberg

The starching, the fluting, the ironing, all take precious hours that might be employed upon some of the must-haves.

From Project Gutenberg

It was that terrible once-on-board-the-lugger-and-the-girl-is-mine-I-must-and-shall-possess-her feeling in its most acute form.

From Project Gutenberg