[General] Your scores aren't

[Anil Giria]

Your scores aren't up to the mark. You had better work harder next time.

Your scores aren't up to the mark. It would be better if you work harder next time.

Are these sentences OK and do they convey the same meaning? I didn't understand why did we use "had" in the first sentence. I understand we use had for past whereas here we are talking about the future.

 

[teechar]

Are these sentences OK, and do they convey the same meaning? I [STRIKE]didn't[/STRIKE] don't understand why [STRIKE]did[/STRIKE] we use "had" in the first sentence. I understand we use "had" for the past, whereas here, we are talking about the future.

"Had better" means "should."
I would avoid using "up to the mark" in that context because of the potential pun. I also find the second sentence unnatural.
Try:
Your scores aren't good. You'd better work harder next time.
or
Your scores aren't good. You need to study harder.

 

[Matthew Wai]

"Had better" means "should."

I think they do not mean exactly the same because a teacher here once told me that 'had better' was used as a command while 'should' was politer, or words to that effect.

 

[teechar]

Have a look at these, Matthew:
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/had-better-best-do-sth?q=had+better/best+do+sth
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/d...better-do-something?q=had+better+do+something

 

[Matthew Wai]

I used to follow those definitions until I read this post.
Have I misunderstood him?

 

[teechar]

I see the reason for your confusion. "Had better" can be used for advice/suggestions or for stronger orders/commands. It depends on the context and tone.
Mike was right in that "had better" is usually a strong "should"; and this tallies with the context of post #1 in this thread.