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Old May 13, 2009, 10:13 PM
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Tomisimo Tomisimo is offline
Davidísimo
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: North America
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Native Language: American English
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The difference between "deber de" and "deber" is tenuous and extremely dialectal. I have literally asked dozens of native speakers over the years because this has been a question of mine for some time. Some native speakers say there are different uses for "deber" and "deber de"; others are emphatic that there is no difference. So I guess it comes down to dialectal differences; Choose the dialect you want to learn and learn it. For all intents and purposes, both are the same or very similar, but it really depends on where you are and who you are talking with.

Probably the most versatile translation for "must have been" is "debe haber estado/sido".

What Malila says-- that one is used for supposition and the other for duty-- probably applies to most of central Mexico and Mexico City.

Other native speakers have said there is absolutely no difference. For example:

Debe estar en la tienda.
Debe de estar en la tienda.
He is (supposed to/needs to/must) be in the store. [obligation]

Debe estar en la tienda.
Debe de estar en la tienda.
He (must be/probably is) in the store. [supposition]

Both sentences can have both meanings, the difference is in the intonation and how you say the sentence. For obligation, the spoken stress is on "debe", and for supposition, it's said more like a question, with the stress more on "tienda".

Anyway, that's my I'm sure not everyone will agree with me.
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