Spanish Language and Culture 10-3Y


4.5  Obligation - Tener que + Infinitive

You have already learned that the verb tener means to have, and you have used it to talk about how many siblings you have, or to describe people or with expressions such as tener frío, tener calor, and tener hambre.  
     ~Tengo dos hermanos pequeños.

Tener is also used to say that you have to do something by combining  tener with the word que plus an infinitive.
      ~Tengo que leer a mis hermanitos cada noche antes de dormir.

Let's first review the conjugation of tener.

¡OJO! Make sure you know the conjugation of tener (to have) and how to use the expression tener que + infinitive


Pronoun Conjugation Pronoun Conjugation
yo tengo 
nosotros tenemos 
tú tienes 
vosotros tenéis 
él/ella/usted tiene 
ellos/ellas ustedes tienen 



Use this formula to express obligation and say that you have to do something in Spanish: tener que + infinitive.

          TENER + QUE + INFINITIVE



Here are some rules for using tener + que + infinitive.

Rule 1

Conjugate the verb tener, and then add que, then  an infinitive verb.

Yo tengo que estudiar. 
  → I have to study.

¿Tú tienes que participar? 
  → Do you have to participate?

Ella tiene que comer. 
  → She has to eat.


Rule 2

Add more information after the infinitive to add details about what you are saying.

Yo tengo que estudiar historia. 
  → I have to study history.

¿Tú tienes que participar en la clase de inglés? 
  → Do you have to participate in the English class?

Ella tiene que comer la hamburguesa. 
  → She has to eat the hamburger.


Rule 3

Put the word no in front of tener to say you don't have to do something.

Yo no tengo que estudiar historia. 
  → I don't have to study history.

¿Tú no tienes que participar en la clase de inglés? 
  → You don't have to participate in the English class?

Ella no tiene que comer la hamburguesa. 
  → She doesn't have to eat the hamburger.



Self-Check Quiz
Time to practice making sentences of obligation

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