Used to & would SESSION 1

Session 1

Have you ever said to yourself 'Things aren't what they used to be'? In this session we hear from three people talking about how things have changed in their lives. You'll also have a chance to test and improve your vocabulary knowledge as we look at some of the words and phrases that are coming up in this Unit.

Session Grammar

  • 'Used to' and 'would'

    Meaning and use

    We can use used to and would to talk about things we did regularly in the past, but we don’t do now. We use used to for either habits or states in the past. Would is used only for past habits, not for past states.
    • Elena used to visit her grandson on Saturdays, but now she visits him on Sundays. (past habit)
    • On Fridays, we would take a long walk after lunch. (past habit)
    • The weather didn’t use to be so cold in May. (past state)
    NOT: The weather wouldn’t be so cold in May.
    Used to and would often have the idea of comparison or change over time.
    • Elena used to visit her grandson on Saturdays but now she visits him on Sundays.
    • We would take a long walk after lunch (but now we do not.)
    • The weather didn’t use to be so cold in May. (now, it is cold in May)

    Form

    The different forms of these phrases are used to + infinitive (without ‘to’) or did / did not / didn’t + use to + infinitive (without ‘to’), and would / would not / wouldn’t + infinitive (without ‘to’).
    Used to is the simple past. Use to is used in negative and question forms. It is used for both habits and states.
    Used to - Habit
    • Isabel used to sing in a band.
    • Pablo didn’t use to drive to work.
    • Did John use to study with you?
    Used to - State
    • Bob used to be much shorter.
    • didn’t use to like art.
    • Did Wayne use to belong to the debate team?
    • Didn’t Margaret use to hate flying?
    Would - Habit (not for states)
    • Since I always had that day free, I would shop for groceries every Monday.
    • Since we were always in a hurry, we wouldn’t stop for tea on Fridays.
    • Would you often stay for lunch?

    Take note: adverbs

    Used to and would already show that something happened in the past. We don’t usually add adverbs. But, if you want to stress a time period, you can add an adverb.
    • didn’t use to travel frequently, but now I do.
    • Nancy would go for a jog every day, but now she doesn’t have enough time.

Activity 1

Things aren't what they used to be

It used to be so different

The pace of modern life means that how we do things now is very different to what we did in the past. From travel to education, technology and family life, so much has changed! In this session we're going to hear three people talk about how things used to be and how they are now. Then you'll have a chance to look at some useful vocabulary that's coming up in Unit 29.

To do

You're going to hear three people, who we'll call X, Y and Z, talking to an interviewer. Each person is talking about something in the present that was different in the past – what is it?
Listen to the audio and complete the activity

Answers

Did you work it out?
  • X is a taxi driver. He's talking about using maps and satnav
  • Y is talking about remembering the names of trees
  • Z is a car enthusiast. She's talking about repairing classic cars

To do

Try this quiz to see how much you understood about our three speakers. Can you get all the questions right?

X, Y or Z?

5 Questions
How well did you understand the audio? Answer these questions

Next

Now that you've heard from speakers X, Y and Z talking about driving, nature and cars, we're going to move on. In the next activity you'll take a closer look at some of the words they used, and learn some other vocabulary that you will see later in this unit. Click below and go!

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