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One in ten has to "gear himself up" to rejoin hectic family life at the end of the working day and one quarter admit having to sneak in naps during week days in order to cope.

What is the meaning of having to sneak? Can this sentence can be said in some other way? Also, can you give another example where having is used like this?

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Another way to say it might be: one in four admit that they must sneak in a nap during the week... – J.R. Jun 17 '12 at 10:38
"one quarter admit they had to sneak in naps during week days in order to cope." – Wolf5370 Jun 17 '12 at 17:48
"Having to sneak" is plain English. Having + to sneak. – Matt Эллен Aug 23 '12 at 8:52

closed as general reference by FumbleFingers, tchrist, MετάEd, Mahnax, Matt Эллен Aug 23 '12 at 8:52

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1 Answer

up vote 5 down vote accepted

"Have to" is a Modal Verb that expresses necessity.

So in your example: the inserted "have to" makes your sentence mean that it's necessary for one to "sneak in naps" to deal with their hectic schedule.

But because the sentence is also using the Verb "admit,"

Admit + V+ing

We should say:

admit HAVING to sneak in naps

Another example would be:

I remember HAVING to attend choir practice when I was a kid.

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IF This sentence can be express without Having then give sentence without using HAVING – Pratik Jun 17 '12 at 11:26
2  
Certainly. "One quarter admit SNEAKING in naps during weekdays." Btw Pratik, you should practice using "please" in your requests – Cool Elf Jun 17 '12 at 12:43
@Pratik pretend that your example sentence referred to just a single person (rather than one quarter of those polled) who admits they have to sneak naps in during the week day in order to cope. For Cool Elf's example, he could have also said I remember I had to attend choir practice when I was a kid. – cornbread ninja 麵包忍者 Jun 17 '12 at 12:43
@Pratik: "have to" = "need to" or "must" (or maybe even "ought to", conversationally). Some examples: I have to go to the bathroom means I need to go to the bathroom. I have to go the bank before we go to the movie means I must go to the bank before we go to the movie. It's getting late, I have to go home now means It's getting late, I ought to head home now. You have to be starting to understand this now, right? – J.R. Jun 18 '12 at 1:33

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