<p>I would translate <code>一定要</code> as "must":</p>

<p><em>Seeing those houses, he thought, "I must buy myself a house!"</em></p>

<p><code>要</code> indeed has several meanings. I'm not sure I'd call that a "problem", but it can be challenging for a learner. I think the most basic meanings are "want", "must", and occasionally "will". Just my 2 cents.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-10-23T23:25:25.730Z
2012-10-23T23:25:25.730Z
Stumpy Joe Pete
<p>can definitely = 一定能</p>

<p>一定要 = must</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-10-24T07:36:27.307Z
aahhh, now I notice that perapera dictionary actually gives a meaning for this as a phrase... 一定能...  thanks
Robert Budzul
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-10-24T09:37:15.050Z
Arika, mind to add something more? Your answer triggered the low quality flag, make sure to write a meaningful answer (3 or 4 lines is enough).
Alenanno
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-10-23T23:39:13.533Z
2012-10-23T23:39:13.533Z
arika
<p>See these two pages for a more detailed explanation:</p>

<ul>
<li><a href="http://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Wanting_to_do_something_with_%22yao%22" rel="nofollow">Wanting to do something with "yao"</a></li>
<li><a href="http://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Auxiliary_verb_%22yao%22_and_its_multiple_meanings" rel="nofollow">Auxiliary verb "yao" and its multiple meanings</a></li>
</ul>

<p>To express "want to" one often uses the verb 想. For example <em>I want to go to the US / 我想去美国</em>. You can also use 要 in this sentence, but it completely changes the tone. In this case it might mean <em>I have to the US</em> or <em>I really want to go the US</em> or it can just be <em>I'm going to the US</em>, depending on the context. In general the tone is much stronger than for 想. For example if you want to express <em>want to have</em> you should use 要 and not 想.</p>

<p>As already mentioned 要 often indicates a firm tone. 一定 (meaning: certainly, must) makes it even stronger, so 一定要 can be translated as <strong>must</strong>.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-10-25T09:25:38.057Z
2012-10-25T09:25:38.057Z
BertR
<p>一看见这些楼房，他心里就想，自己一定要买上一套房子。</p>

<p>This is the sentence that I've come across.  I've translated it as:</p>

<p>Once he sees these houses, he thinks that he can definitely buy a house himself.</p>

<p>But I'm always confused by 要.  I seems to have several meanings... 'to want to', 'will' and I suspect, in different contexts it has some grammatical meaning.</p>

<p>In this context it seems to mean 'will', though I'd always learnt 要 as meaning 'want to'. </p>

<p>Any guidelines here? </p>

<meaning>
problem with 要 - it seems to have several meanings
# problem with 要 - it seems to have several meanings

(Asked by: username_0 on 2012-10-23)

一看见这些楼房，他心里就想，自己一定要买上一套房子。

This is the sentence that I've come across. I've translated it as:

Once he sees these houses, he thinks that he can definitely buy a house himself.

But I'm always confused by 要. I seems to have several meanings... 'to want to', 'will' and I suspect, in different contexts it has some grammatical meaning.

In this context it seems to mean 'will', though I'd always learnt 要 as meaning 'want to'.

Any guidelines here?

**Tags:** meaning


---

## 3 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2012-10-23. Score: 1

I would translate `一定要` as "must":

*Seeing those houses, he thought, "I must buy myself a house!"*

`要` indeed has several meanings. I'm not sure I'd call that a "problem", but it can be challenging for a learner. I think the most basic meanings are "want", "must", and occasionally "will". Just my 2 cents.


---

### Answer by username_2 on 2012-10-23. Score: 1

can definitely = 一定能

一定要 = must

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: aahhh, now I notice that perapera dictionary actually gives a meaning for this as a phrase... 一定能...  thanks  
> **username_3**: username_2, mind to add something more? Your answer triggered the low quality flag, make sure to write a meaningful answer (3 or 4 lines is enough).  

---

### Answer by username_4 on 2012-10-25. Score: 0

See these two pages for a more detailed explanation:

* [Wanting to do something with "yao"](http://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Wanting_to_do_something_with_%22yao%22)
* [Auxiliary verb "yao" and its multiple meanings](http://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Auxiliary_verb_%22yao%22_and_its_multiple_meanings)

To express "want to" one often uses the verb 想. For example *I want to go to the US / 我想去美国*. You can also use 要 in this sentence, but it completely changes the tone. In this case it might mean *I have to the US* or *I really want to go the US* or it can just be *I'm going to the US*, depending on the context. In general the tone is much stronger than for 想. For example if you want to express *want to have* you should use 要 and not 想.

As already mentioned 要 often indicates a firm tone. 一定 (meaning: certainly, must) makes it even stronger, so 一定要 can be translated as **must**.


---

