English. USED TO

Please complete the sentences with use(d) to...

1- Jim _________ (play) football when he was 10 years old. Now he plays
 basketball.

2- This shop _________ (be) a supermarket, but it's now a pet shop.

3- He _________ (not be) at home at any time. Now he's always there.

4- Mathew _________ (not smoke), but now he's smoking all the time.

5- _________ you _________ (go) with these people last year?

6- _________ she _________ (eat) rice when she was with you?

Explanation and extra examples

When we are interested in describing past habits or states, we use "used to". 

Cuando estamos interesados en describir hábitos del pasado o estados, utilizamos "used to".

"Used to" podría traducirse como "soler" o "acostumbrar"

"Used to" suggests that something is no longer true. 

"Used to" sugiere que algo ya no es cierto.

• This shop used to be a cinema. [It is not a cinema any more]
  • Esta tienda solía ser un cine. [Antes era un cine, pero ya no es un cine]

We want to emphasize the fact that it is not a cinema any more. 

Queremos enfatizar el hecho de que ya no es un cine. 

Examples

• We used to play football years ago. Now we go to the mountain. 
  • Solíamos/acostumbrábamos a juagar al fútbol hace años. Ahora vamos a la montaña.

• When she was eleven years old, she used to study English. Now she studies Japanese.
  • Cuando (ella) tenía once años, (ella) solía estudiar inglés. Ahora (ella) estudia japonés.

Be careful with negatives and questions:

Negative

• Wrong --> She didn't used to dance a lot.
• Right --> She didn't use to dance a lot.

Interrogative

• Wrong --> Did she used to dance a lot?
• Right --> Did she use to dance a lot?

ANSWERS

1- Jim used to play football when he was 10 years old. Now he plays basketball.

2- This shop used to be a supermarket, but it's now a pet shop.

3- He didn't use to be at home at any time. Now he's always there.

4- Mathew didn't use to smoke, but now he's smoking all the time.

5- Did you use to go with these people last year?

6- Did she use to eat rice when she was with you?