Question

Fill in the blanks with appropriate option:
I’m afraid I can’t come tomorrow. I __________ work late.
a. Have to
b. Has to
c. Had to
d. Had

Answer 1

Hint: The appropriate word has to be selected keeping in mind the tense of the action. Tense states the time in which the action is done, there are three tenses Past Tense, Present Tense and Future Tense. Here the action would be happening in future hence it is future tense.

Complete answer:
Option a: Have to – Have to state compulsion of the action and that action is done by the narrator of the sentence or first person.
Example: I have to arrive on time.

Option b: Has to – Has to states compulsion of the action that is to be done with the aspect of third person.
Example: She has an ink-pen.

Option c: Had to – Had to give compulsion of an action which was done in past, hence past tense.
Example: He had to disconnect the power supply.

Option d: Had – Had also gives us information about a verb which has happened in the past. It is a Past Perfect Tense which says that the action has happened in the past and has been successfully finished and is not being continued now.
Example: I had a copy of Xerox.

The appropriate option would be ‘– have to’
I’m afraid I can’t come tomorrow. I have to work late.

Note: The option b – have to is the most appropriate for the mentioned blank, this gives a future compulsion of the action that needs to be done.