Home › B1 › Grammar › Used to and would for past habits
Used to and would for past habits
B1 B1 grammar · lesson 4 of 23
Use ‘used to’ and ‘would’ to talk about things that were true in the past but are not true now. They are perfect for talking about your childhood.
Used to + infinitive
We use used to + infinitive for past habits and past states that are not true now.
| Positive | Negative | Question |
|---|---|---|
| I used to play tennis. | I didn’t use to play tennis. | Did you use to play tennis? |
| She used to live here. | She didn’t use to live here. | Where did she use to live? |
After did / didn’t we write use to, without -d, just like other verbs: did go, didn’t use.
I used to walk to school every day. (a past habit)
Tom used to have long hair. (a past state)
There used to be a cinema in this street, but it closed.
We didn’t use to eat fish, but now we love it.
Did you use to wear glasses?
Would + infinitive
We can also use would for repeated actions in the past. It is common in stories and memories, often after we start with used to.
When I was a child, we used to visit my grandparents every summer. My grandmother would bake bread, and we would eat it warm.
Every evening my dad would read us a story.
On Sundays we would go for a long walk by the river.
Used to or would?
| Meaning | used to | would |
|---|---|---|
| repeated actions | ✓ I used to swim every day. | ✓ I would swim every day. |
| states (be, have, live, like, know) | ✓ I used to have a dog. | ✗ (not possible) |
For one single action, use the past simple, not used to: I went to Paris in 2015. Also, do not use used to for the present. For present habits, use the present simple with a word like usually: I usually walk to work.
Common mistakes
✗ I use to play football when I was young.
✓ I used to play football when I was young.
✗ Did you used to live here?
✓ Did you use to live here?
✗ We would have a big garden.
✓ We used to have a big garden.