USE OF 'USED TO' VS 'USE OF WOULD'
What is the difference between 'used to' and 'would'? The use of 'would' and 'used to' are normally similar but yet students find a little difficult to find the difference between them. They are confused when to use ‘used to’ and ‘would’ while talking about the past actions which are currently not followed.
In
this lesson, with the help of two simple rules and dozens of examples we have
tried to clarify the students the difference between the usage of ‘used to’ and
‘would’.
There
are many other uses of ‘would’ as well but we are discussing here only the
differences between ‘used to’ and ‘would’.
So, let’s start our lesson.
RULE # 01
USE OF 'USED TO'
To
express past repeated actions we use ‘used to’
For Example
- I used to play football every day.
- She used to swim in the sea.
Note: Always
use first form of verb after ‘used to’.
USE OF 'WOULD'
Would can also be used to express past repeated actions which are currently not followed in present.
For Example
- When I was young, I would play football. (Correct)
- When I was young, I used to play football. (Correct)
Note: Always use first form of verb after ‘would’.
Countable and Uncountable Nouns
MORE EXAMPLES
We
didn’t use to watch TV when I was in hostel. (Correct)
When
I was in hostel my mom would call me daily. (Correct)
I
used to work 18 hours daily when I was a teenager. (Correct)
I would work 18 hours daily when I was a teenager. (Correct)
RULE # 02
Past
states which are not true now, we use ‘used to’. Using would with these kind of
sentences is incorrect.
For Example
- I used to be an engineer, but now I’m a teacher. (Correct)
- I would be an engineer, but now I’m a teacher. (Incorrect).
More Examples
- They used to be a brilliant team, but now they are not good enough. (Correct)
- They would be a brilliant team, but now they are not good enough (Incorrect)
- She used to be a genius student, but now she is just an ordinary one. (Correct)
- I used to be a professional cricketer, but now I do an office job. (Correct)