haber de + Infinitive
Hei de, has de, ha de + infinitive talks about the future with a sense of determination or duty: Hei de ir a Compostela (I will go to Compostela, I'm set on it).
How It Works
Form: present of haber + de + infinitive.
- hei, has, ha, habemos, habedes, han + de + infinitive
The forms hemos and hedes are also Galician, but the standard prefers habemos and habedes. Write ha and has without an accent.
Main meaning: the future, often with determination. Hei de ir a Compostela means "I will go to Compostela" with a sense of "I'm determined to". In everyday speech it competes with the simple future: Hei de chamar ≈ Chamarei.
Obligation that looks ahead. Addressed to someone else, it becomes an instruction for later: Has de vir mañá (you have to come tomorrow). The obligation always points to the future. For a general rule that holds now, use ter que or deber.
A guess: in the third person it can also express probability: Ha de andar polos corenta (she must be about forty).
With or without de. The Real Academia Galega dictionary also accepts haber + infinitive without de, with the same meanings: Hei mercar un piso = Hei de mercar un piso.
Pronouns usually attach to haber: Heiche de contar o que pasou (I'll tell you what happened).
Examples (6)
- Hei de ir a Compostela algún día.
I'll go to Compostela one day, I'm set on it.
Word by Word: I-have of go to Compostela some day.
- Has de vir mañá sen falta.
You must come tomorrow without fail.
Addressed to another person, haber de gives an instruction for the future.
- Heiche de contar o que pasou.
I'll tell you what happened.
The pronoun che attaches to hei: hei + che → heiche.
- Non hei de esquecer nunca este día.
I will never forget this day.
- Algún día hei mercar unha casa no campo.
One day I'll buy a house in the countryside.
The variant without de is also standard.
- Esa muller ha de andar polos corenta anos.
That woman must be about forty.
In the third person, ha de can express a guess.
Common Mistakes
Using que instead of de after a personal form of haber.
Hei que ir ao médico.Teño que ir ao médico.Personal haber takes de (hei de ir) or nothing (hei ir). Que only follows the impersonal hai (hai que). For a present obligation, ter que is the natural choice.
Using haber de for a general rule in the present.
Un médico ha de escoitar os pacientes.Un médico ten que escoitar os pacientes.In Galician, an obligation with haber de always points to the future. A rule that applies now uses ter que or deber. Ha de here copies a Spanish use.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Haber de uses personal haber forms with an infinitive to express a forward-looking meaning.
Related Patterns
- Simple Future
The simple future, which haber de often replaces in speech.
Level 2 - ter que + InfinitiveHaving to: Ter Que
The usual way to express a present obligation.
Level 2 - ir + InfinitiveGoing to: Ir + Infinitive
Another periphrasis for plans and the near future.
Level 2 - ter de + InfinitiveObligation with Ter De
A literary periphrasis of obligation with a similar form.
Level 5 - Future of Probability
Another way to make a guess, using the simple future.
Level 4
Words in This Pattern
Practice haber de + Infinitive in Bubblegum
Poppy, your AI tutor, writes Galician lessons at your level. Tap any grammar point in a lesson to see its full explanation.
