Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[rayt]

Hi!

For the sentence below:

KapohoKine is your source for the best Hawaii adventure tours and volcano tours the Big Island has to offer!

Please clarify me if �has to� here means �must�?? Or what does it mean here?

1. Where can/should I make a brief pause if I am reading this sentence?
2. Say I am asked to rewrite this sentence, what can I do?

Thank you very much for your help.

[redset]

In this sentence you have has + to offer (infinitive), not has to + offer. Has + to offer means that 'the Big Island' has these things and is able to offer them. Things you have to offer are things you can give, or things you can provide, even rewards.

Have/has to offer is a common phrase in English, so if you can just remember this meaning you'll be fine. You're also correct in that 'has to' could mean 'must', which would cause the sentence to mean 'the Big Island is required to offer these things' - but if you read the sentence, it makes more sense that they would be talking about Hawaii's plus points.

There isn't really a place where you'd pause when reading this - possibly after 'source', but it would be a fairly subtle pause and not everybody would do it.

You could stress the following words though:
KapohoKine is your source for the best Hawaii adventure tours and volcano tours the Big Island has to offer!

If you have to rewrite it, think of the important points being made:
1) Hawaii offers (is able to provide) adventure tours and volcano tours.
2) KapohoKine claims to provide the best tours on the island.
3) KapohoKine says that they're 'your source' for these tours - meaning if you want the best tours, you should go to them (and not another tour operator).

This is obviously advertising copy, written to sell KapohoKine's tours and to make them look good. If you rewrite it, try to make all the same points and try to give the sense that, if you want to have a great time on an adventure or volcano tour in Hawaii, you need to go to KapohoKine!