мора да for Guessing
Must for Guessing
Мора да can mean "I am sure this is so, although I did not see it": Мора да е уморен. (He must be tired.) Мора да заборавила. (She must have forgotten.)
How It Works
Мора да has two meanings. In може да; мора да; треба да it means obligation: Морам да одам. (I have to go.) Here it means a conclusion: the speaker sees evidence and draws a confident guess.
Form. Мора stays in the he/she form for everyone, and the person is shown by the verb after да:
- Мора да си гладен. (You must be hungry.)
- Мора да сте уморни. (You must be tired.)
Compare Морате да сте точни (You have to be on time), which is an obligation.
About now: use the present: Мора да е дома, светлото е вклучено. (He must be home; the light is on.) Мора да има некоја грешка. (There must be some mistake.)
About the past: use the l-form (л-форма: -л; -ла; -ло; -ле), which agrees with the subject: Мора да заборавил (he must have forgotten), мора да заборавила (she must have forgotten), мора да врнело синоќа (it must have rained last night). The l-form fits because the speaker did not see the event (compare аорист наспроти л-форма).
Не мора да means "not necessarily": Не мора да е вистина. (It isn't necessarily true.)
For weaker guesses, see можеби; веројатно; сигурно. For more on the two meanings of мора да, see модалност: мора да; треба да.
Examples (6)
- Мора да е уморен, цел ден работеше.
He must be tired; he worked all day.
Word by Word: Must that is tired, whole day he-worked.
- Мора да заборавила, штом не дојде.
She must have forgotten, since she didn't come.
Word by Word: Must that forgot-she, since not came.
The feminine l-form заборавила shows that the subject is "she".
- Мора да врнело синоќа, улиците се мокри.
It must have rained last night; the streets are wet.
Word by Word: Must that rained last-night, streets-the are wet.
- Мора да има некоја грешка.
There must be some mistake.
Word by Word: Must that has some mistake.
- Мора да сте гладни после патувањето.
You must be hungry after the trip.
Word by Word: Must that you-are hungry after trip-the.
Мора does not change for "you" (plural).
- Не мора да е вистина.
It isn't necessarily true.
Word by Word: Not must that is truth.
Common Mistakes
Conjugating мора when making a guess.
Морате да сте уморни.Мора да сте уморни.Морате да сте уморни sounds like an order: "You have to be tired". For the guess "You must be tired", keep мора unchanged.
Using a present perfective verb for a guess about the past.
Мора да заборави.Мора да заборавил.Мора да заборави means "He must forget" (an obligation). For "He must have forgotten", use the l-form заборавил.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Must for guessing builds on мора да and the l-form.
Related Patterns
- можеби / веројатно / сигурноDegrees of Certainty
Words for weaker or stronger guesses.
Level 4 - Obligation and Inference
A closer look at how context decides between obligation and guess.
Level 6 - Seen or Heard About
Why the l-form suits events the speaker did not see.
Level 4 - ќе даPresumptive Ќе Да
A literary way to make a strong guess: Ќе да е некој пријател.
Level 6
Words in This Pattern
Practice мора да for Guessing in Bubblegum
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