'I used to ski, but now I snowboard.'
We use 'used to' to talk about past events which we no longer do. We only use it to talk about the past; there is no similar expression for the present.
'I studied French, but I don’t anymore.' → 'I used to study French.'
'In the past I smoked, but I don't now.' → 'I used to smoke.'
Note: after 'used' to we alway use the infinitive. Never use a continuous or past tense verb:
'I used to smoke.'
'I used to smoking.'
'I used to smoked.'
We usually use 'did' when we ask about past habits.
The typical question form is:
'Did you use to watch Mickey Mouse?'
'Did you use to like school?'
Note: 'Use to' is used in the question form not 'used to'.
'Use to' questions can be answered in a couple of ways. Take a look at the follwing question and response:
'Did you use to wear a school uniform?'
'Yes, I used to wear a horrible uniform!'
(or in negative sentences)
'I didn't use to wear a uniform'. or 'I used not to...'
We use 'would' when we want to talk about how often a past habit happenened. It can have the same meaning as 'used to'. For example:
'I used to go swimming twice a week.'→ ' I would go swimming twice a week.'
Note: Both of these sentences have the same meaning.
We can use 'would' instead of 'used to' when a time is mentioned:
'When I was young, I used to visit my grandmother every summmer.'→ ' When I was young, I would visit my grandmother every summer.'
Note: Both of these sentences have the same meaning.
If the sentence is not about a repeating habit/action, or does not include a time expression, we can not use 'would':
'I used to play piano.'→'I would play piano.'
It is more natural to say:
'I used to play piano. I would practise every day.'
