We can talk about things in the that past using used to and would. These are used as alternatives to the past simple to describe repeated actions and habits that took place over a period of time. Whilst it is not mandatory to use used to and would in these situations, fluency appear limited if we rely on using just the simple past.
used to (previous behaviour OR being accustomed to something)
previous behaviour
used to + to + infinitive
affirmative statements
She used to smoke 20 cigarettes a day.
I used to live in São Paulo.
They used to study law.
questions
How many cigarettes did she used to smoke?
Where did you used to live?
What did they used to study?
negative
She did not used to smoke.
You did not used to live in São Paulo.
They never used to study law!
would
would + bare infinitive
He would believe that he was the best in the group; nobody liked him.
The company would give different presentations to different people on different days.
On Fridays, we would all go to a restaurant together.
Exceptions
Whilst both forms are used to describe activities in the past, we cannot use would to describe extended past states:
We used to live in London together.
There used to be a lot more smaller independent cinemas in London.
We can use would and used to to describe repeated temporary states. It is not possible to use would to describe previous past states. We cannot say:
I would be married to an Indian lady (marriage is considered a ‘permanent’ state), but we can say I used to be married to an Indian lady.
There would be a cinema in the town, but we can say, there used to be a cinema in the town.
to be used to something (accustomed)
She is used to speaking English every day.
They are used to dealing with problems, as they do this every day.
Common Problems
Would is also used as a modal verb expressing hypothetical meaning.
I would like to own a Ferrari.
I would like to be able to travel the world.
Students sometimes miss the ‘d when a contraction is used:
I’d go go to the cinema when there was one in the town. (I would – past tense)
They’d often come here. (they would – past tense)
____
What did you used to do?
What would people do in the past?
____