Definition ofused to modal verb from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary
used to
modal verb(didn’t use to /ˌdɪdnt ˈjuːs tə/, before vowels and finally /ˌdɪdnt ˈjuːs tu/ /ˌdɪdnt ˈjuːs tə/, before vowels and finally /ˌdɪdnt ˈjuːs tu/,also British English, old-fashioned or formalused not to,usedn’t to /ˈjuːsnt tə/, before vowels and finally /ˈjuːsnt tu/ /ˈjuːsnt tə/, before vowels and finally /ˈjuːsnt tu/)
- used to say that something happened continuously or frequently during a period in the past
- I used to live in London.
- That's what my father always used to say.
- I didn't use to like him much when we were at school.
- Didn't you use to have long hair?
- I used to think that it would be a great idea to live there.
- We used to go sailing on the lake in summer.
- She used to work for a large insurance company.
- I used to play a lot of football.
- You used to see a lot of her, didn't you?
Grammar Pointused toused to- Except in negatives and questions, the correct form isused to:
- I used to go there every Saturday.
- I use to go there every Saturday.
- To form questions, usedid:
- Did she use to have long hair?
- The negative form is usuallydidn’t use to, but inBritish English this is quite informal and is not usually used in writing.
- The negative formused not to (rather formal) and the question formused you to…? (old-fashioned and very formal) are only used inBritish English, usually in writing.
Grammar Pointmodal verbsmodal verbs- Themodal verbs arecan,could,may,might,must,ought to,shall,should,will andwould.Dare,need,have to andused to also share some of the features of modal verbs.
- Modal verbs have only one form. They have no-ing or-ed forms and do not add-s to the 3rd person singular form:
- He can speak three languages.
- She will try and visit tomorrow.
- Modal verbs are followed by the infinitive of another verb withoutto. The exceptions areought to,have to andused to:
- You must find a job.
- You ought to stop smoking.
- I used to smoke but I gave up two years ago.
- Questions are formed withoutdo/does in the present, ordid in the past:
- Can I invite Mary?
- Should I have invited Mary?
- Negative sentences are formed withnot or the short form-n’t and do not usedo/does ordid.
Which Word?used to / be used toused to / be used toDo not confuseused to do something withbe used to something.- You useused to do something to talk about something that happened regularly or was the case in the past, but is not now:
- I used to go to football matches every Saturday with my dad.
- You usebe used to (doing) something to talk about something that you are familiar with so that it no longer seems new or strange to you:
- We’re used to the noise from the traffic now.
- I’m used to getting up early.
- You can also useget used to something:
- Don’t worry—you’ll soon get used to his sense of humour.
- I didn’t think I could ever get used to living in a big city after living in the country.
Check pronunciation:used to