TOPIC 1: USED TO

Used to: meaning and form

We use used to when we refer to things in the past which are no longer true. It can refer to
repeated actions or to a state or situation:

He used to play football for the local team, but he’s too old now.

That white house over there used to belong to my family. (It belonged to my family in the
past, but not any more.)

Warning:

In statements, the form used to does not change. We do not use the verb be before it. It
always refers to past time:

We used to go to the seaside every summer when I was a kid.

Not: We are used to go … or We use to go … or We were used to go …

Negative: didn’t use to

The negative of used to is most commonly didn’t use(d) to. Sometimes we write it with a
final -d, sometimes not. Both forms are common, but many people consider the form with
the final -d to be incorrect, and you should not use it in exams:

It didn’t use to be so crowded in the shops as it is nowadays.

I didn’t used to like broccoli when I was younger, but I love it now. (Don’t use this form
in exams.)

In very formal styles, we can use the negative form used not to:

She used not to live as poorly as she does now.

Questions
The most common form of question is auxiliary did + use(d) to. Many people consider the
form with a final -d to be incorrect, and you should not use it in exams:

I think we met once, a couple of years ago. Did you use to work with Kevin Harris?

Didn’t she used to live in the same street as us? (Don’t use this form in written exams.)

Emphatic did

We can use the emphatic auxiliary did with used to:

We never used to mix very much with the neighbours, but we did used to say hello to them
in the street. (Don’t use this form in written exams.)

Used to

Grammar > Verbs > Tenses and time > Past > Used to

from English Grammar Today

Used to: meaning and form

We use used to when we refer to things in the past which are no longer true. It can refer to
repeated actions or to a state or situation:

He used to play football for the local team, but he’s too old now.

That white house over there used to belong to my family. (It belonged to my family in the
past, but not any more.)

Warning:

In statements, the form used to does not change. We do not use the verb be before it. It
always refers to past time:

We used to go to the seaside every summer when I was a kid.

Not: We are used to go … or We use to go … or We were used to go …
Negative: didn’t use to

The negative of used to is most commonly didn’t use(d) to. Sometimes we write it with a
final -d, sometimes not. Both forms are common, but many people consider the form with
the final -d to be incorrect, and you should not use it in exams:

It didn’t use to be so crowded in the shops as it is nowadays.

I didn’t used to like broccoli when I was younger, but I love it now. (Don’t use this form
in exams.)

In very formal styles, we can use the negative form used not to:

She used not to live as poorly as she does now.

Questions

The most common form of question is auxiliary did + use(d) to. Many people consider the
form with a final -d to be incorrect, and you should not use it in exams:

I think we met once, a couple of years ago. Did you use to work with Kevin Harris?

Didn’t she used to live in the same street as us? (Don’t use this form in written exams.)

Emphatic did

We can use the emphatic auxiliary did with used to:

We never used to mix very much with the neighbours, but we did used to say hello to them
in the street. (Don’t use this form in written exams.
 TOPIC 2: MODAL VERB “MUST”

Must: forms

Affirmative (+) form

Must comes first in the verb phrase (after the subject and before another verb):

She must have lots of friends.

Must can’t be used with another modal verb.

This must be your sister.

Not: This must can be your sister. or This can must be your sister.

Negative (−) form

The negative form of must is mustn’t. We don’t use don’t/doesn’t/didn’t with must:

There mustn’t be any rubbish left.

Not: There dosen’t must be any rubbish left.

We can use the full form must not in formal contexts or when we want to emphasise
something:

You must not leave any rubbish.

See also:

 Modal verbs

Question (?) form

 Warning:

The subject and must change position to form questions. We don’t use do/does/did:

Must you make that noise?

Not: Do you must make that noise?

We can use must and mustn’t in question tags though tags with must aren’t very common:

The house must be worth millions, mustn’t it?

Must: uses

Deductions and conclusions

When we think carefully about facts, we often use must to express deductions and
conclusions from these:

[fact]He’s so small. [deduction/conclusion]He must be no more than four years old.

[Two teachers talking about a student]

A:

He falls asleep in class every morning. (fact)

B:

He must be out late every night or maybe he works at night. (deduction/conclusion)

Warning:

We use can’t/cannot as the negative of must to deny something or make negative

deductions or conclusions:

It just can’t be true. He can’t have left his job.

That cannot be his sister. She looks so different.

See also:

 Can
Warning:

We use must have + ed form and can’t have + ed form to talk about deductions in the past.
They always refer to deduction, not obligation:

[A wanted to talk to B so she phoned him but he didn’t answer the phone. She phoned
again the next day]

A:

I called you yesterday around three o’clock but you must have been out.

B:

We must have been in the garden. That’s a pity.

[A is telling B about his illness]

A:

I spent a month in hospital before I was able to walk.

B:

That can’t have been easy for you.

Spoken English:

In speaking, we very often express our reaction to what we hear using phrases such as that
must be or that must have been:

A:

She lives in Thailand now.

B:

That must be amazing!

A:

Twelve years ago Kevin and I went on a six-week camping trip.

B:
That must have been fun.

Obligation and necessity

Must expresses strong obligation and necessity:

I must talk to you about the new project.

Seat belts must be worn even in the back of the car.

There must be a minimum of two members of the company at the meeting.

Warning:

We use had to not must to express obligation and necessity in the past:

By the time we got back to our bikes, it was dark and we had to cycle home in the dark
without any lights …

Not: … it was dark and we must cycle home in the dark …

Last year, teachers had to make a report on each child every week.

Not: Last year, teachers must make a report …

We use must to talk about the future in the past when we report speech or people’s thoughts
in formal contexts:

[Extract from a novel]

The pain was back in full force, but she knew she must not give in to it. She must go on
day by day.

We use will have to more than must to express future obligation, especially when talking
about obligations at a particular point in the future:

He’ll have to wait five weeks for his eye operation. Then he’ll have to have both eyes
operated on.

We often use must with more general references to the future, particularly when talking
about obligations that come from the speaker:
 The Prime Minister must decide in the next month.

I must try harder next time.

I must pop round one evening next week.

When we talk about no obligation, we use either need not, don’t/doesn’t/didn’t have to or

the negative of the main verb need (don’t/doesn’t need):

You needn’t worry about it. I’ll take care of it.

You don’t have to worry about it. I’ll take care of it.

You don’t need to worry about it. I’ll take care of it.

Rules and laws

We use must not to talk about what is not permitted:

You must not park outside the entrance.

You must not make noise after 9 o’clock.

Must and must not often occur in public signs and notices indicating laws, rules and
prohibitions:

[airline website information]

All passengers must present valid photo identification at check-in for all flights.

[bus company website notice]

Tickets must be retained for inspection, and must be produced for inspection on request by

any authorised official of Bus Éireann. (Bus Éireann is the name of the Irish national bus
company)

See also:

 Commands and instructions

 Invitations and encouragement

We also use must to express polite invitations or encouragement:

You must come and see us soon.

You must try some of this chocolate cake. It’s delicious.

You must go and see that film.

See also:

 Invitations

Criticisms

We use the question form of must in criticisms:

Must you keep playing that terrible music?

Why must you mispronounce my name every time?

Must and have (got) to?

Obligations

We usually use must to talk about obligations which come from the speaker and we
generally use have (got) to when we refer to obligations that come from outside the
speaker.

Compare

The obligation is from me to

I must buy some new clothes. Mine look so old.
buy new clothes.
I’ve got to buy some new clothes. I’m starting a new The obligation is from the
job as a teacher and we have to wear formal clothes. school to buy new clothes.

Warning:

Must not and don’t have to/haven’t got to have different meanings.

Compare

You must not give my credit card

details to anyone. We use mustn’t to talk about something which is

You mustn’t tell this to anyone. forbidden.

It’s a secret.

You don’t have to tell anyone. I

will email everyone. We use don’t have to/haven’t got to when

We haven’t got to wear a uniform something is not necessary. It is not forbidden.

to work.

Don’t have to can sometimes be used to criticise someone or to tell them not to do
something. This is less direct than must not:

You don’t have to drink all of the juice! (stop drinking the juice!)

Deductions

We can also use have got to when we make deductions or draw conclusions. Must is more
common than have (got) to in this meaning:

That must be a fake!

That picture has got to be a fake!

 See also:

 Have got to and have to

Must: typical errors

 We don’t use must to express obligation and necessity in the past. We use had to instead:

When she got home, she had to cook dinner before everyone arrived.

Not: When she got home, she must cook dinner before …

 We don’t use must to make predictions about the future. We use will instead:

Don’t worry about our accommodation because I found a nice hotel which will be suitable
for us.

Not: Don’t worry about our accommodation because I found a nice hotel which must be
suitable for us.
 TOPIC 3: MODAL VERB “OUGHT TO”

Ought to is a semi-modal verb because it is in some ways like a modal verb and in some
ways like a main verb. For example, unlike modal verbs, it is followed by to, but like modal
verbs, it does not change form for person:

I ought to phone my parents.

It ought to be easy now.

Ought to: form

Affirmative

Ought to comes first in the verb phrase (after the subject and before another verb):

We ought to do more exercise.

Ought to cannot be used with another modal verb:

Medicine ought to be free.

Not: Medicine ought to can be free. or Medicine can ought to be free.

Negative

The negative is formed by adding ‘not’ after ought (ought not to). It can be contracted
to oughtn’t to. We don’t use don’t, doesn’t, didn’t with ought to:

We ought not to have ordered so much food.

Not: We don’t ought to have ordered so much food.

You oughtn’t to have said that about his mother.

Not: You didn’t ought to have said that about his mother.

The negative of ought to is not common. We usually use shouldn’t or should not instead:

You shouldn’t speak to your father like that. (preferred to You oughtn’t to speak …)

Questions

The subject and ought to change position to form questions. We don’t use do, does, did:

Ought she to call the police?

Not: Does she ought to call the police?

Ought we to be more worried about the environment?

Not: Do we ought to be more worried about the environment?

Warning:

The question form of ought to is not very common. It is very formal. We usually
use should instead.

Ought to: uses

What is desired or ideal

We use ought to when talking about things which are desired or ideal:

They ought to have more parks in the city centre.

We ought to eat lots of fruit and vegetables every day.

We use ought to have + -ed form to talk about things that were desired or ideal in the past
but which didn’t happen. It can express regret:

We ought to have locked the gate. Then the dog wouldn’t have got out. (The ideal or
desired thing was that we locked the gate, but we didn’t.)

I often think that I ought to have studied medicine not pharmacy. (I would be happier now
if I had studied medicine.)

What is likely
We can use ought to when we talk about what is likely or probable:

The concert ought to only take about two hours so we’ll be home by 12 pm.

There ought to be some good films at the cinema this weekend.

Ought to or should?

Ought to and should are similar in meaning. Should is more common than ought to. Ought

to is more formal than should:

There ought to be more street lights here. (means the same as There should be more street
lights here.)

I really ought to walk my dog more. He’s so fat. (means the same as I really should walk

my dog more. He’s so fat.)
 TOPIC 4: MODAL VERB “HAD BETTER”

Had better: form and meaning

We use had better to refer to the present or the future, to talk about actions we think people
should do or which are desirable in a specific situation. The verb form is always had,
not have. We normally shorten it to ’d better in informal situations. It is followed by the
infinitive without to:

It’s five o’clock. I’d better go now before the traffic gets too bad.

Not: I’d better to go now.

The democratic movement had better concentrate on the immediate issues of the economy

and security. (more formal)

Had better is a strong expression. We use it if we think there will be negative results if
someone does not do what is desired or suggested:

She’d better get here soon or she’ll miss the opening ceremony.

Spoken English:

Sometimes people say had best instead of had better, especially in informal speaking. This
sounds slightly less strong and less direct:

You’d best leave it till Monday. There’s no one in the office today.

Had better: negative and question forms

The negative of had better is had better not (or ’d better not):

I’d better not leave my bag there. Someone might steal it.

You’d better not tell Elizabeth about the broken glass – she’ll go crazy!
The question form of had better is made by inverting the subject and had. This means the
same as should, but is more formal:

Had I better speak to Joan first before I send this form off? What do you think?

Had we better leave a note for the delivery guy to take the parcel next door?

Negative questions with had better are more common than affirmative ones:

Hadn’t we better ring the school and tell them Liam is sick?

Hadn’t you better switch your computer off? It might overheat if you leave it on.

Had better or be better, be best?

We use had better to give advice in a specific situation. We use the phrase be better or be
best + to-infinitive for more general suggestions:

It’s always better to be safe than sorry. (‘It’s better to be safe than sorry’ is a saying which
means that you should be careful before taking any action.)

I think it would be best to speak to the people in the video shop to see what they
recommend.

Had better or would rather, would prefer?

We don’t use had better when we talk about preferences. We use would rather or would

prefer.

Compare

I’d better get a taxi. The buses are so It is a good idea, better, or advisable to get a
slow. taxi.

I’d rather get a taxi. I don’t like buses. I prefer to get a taxi.

 Had better: typical errors

 We use had better to give specific advice, not to talk about obligations or requirements;
instead, we use have to, have got to or must:

You have to (or must) hold a full, valid driving licence to hire a car.

Not: You’d better hold a full, valid driving licence to hire a car.

See also:

 Have got to and have to

 Must

 We don’t use had better to talk about preferences; instead, we use would rather or would

prefer:

They offered her a job in Warsaw, but she said she’d rather work in a smaller city. (or
… she’d prefer to work …)

Not: … she’d better work …

 We don’t use had better to make ordinary suggestions or recommendations:

Auckland is a great place to visit. I’d recommend you take a boat trip across the bay and
see some of the islands. Then you can find a nice restaurant for lunch. There are plenty of
them.

Not: You’d better take a boat trip across the bay and see some of the islands. Then you’d
better find a nice restaurant for lunch.
 TOPIC 5: PAST CONTINUOUS

The Past Continuous tense is an important tense in English. We use it to say what we were
in the middle of doing at a particular moment in the past.

In this lesson we look at the structure and the use of the Past Continuous tense, followed
by a quiz to check your understanding.

Note that continuous tenses are also called progressive tenses. So the Past Continuous

tense is sometimes called the Past Progressive tense.

How do we make the Past Continuous tense?

The structure of the past continuous tense is:

subject + auxiliary be + main verb

conjugated in Past Simple  

was, were present participle

The auxiliary verb (be) is conjugated in the Past Simple: was, were

The main verb is invariable in present participle form: -ing

For negative sentences we insert not between the auxiliary verb and the main verb.

For question sentences, we exchange the subject and the auxiliary verb.

Look at these example sentences with the Past Continuous tense:

  subject auxiliary verb   main verb  

+ I was   watching TV.

+ You were   working hard.

 - He, she, it was no helping Mary.
t

- We were no joking.  
t

? Were you   being silly?

? Were they   playing football?

How do we use the Past Continuous tense?

The Past Continuous tense expresses action at a particular moment in the past. The action
started before that moment but has not finished at that moment. For example, yesterday I
watched a film on TV. The film started at 7pm and finished at 9pm.

At 8pm yesterday, I was watching TV.

past present future

8pm  

At 8pm, I was in the middle of    

watching TV.

When we use the Past Continuous tense, our listener usually knows or understands what
time we are talking about. Look at these examples:

 I was working at 10pm last night.

 They were not playing football at 9am this morning.
 What were you doing at 10pm last night?
 What were you doing when he arrived?
 She was cooking when I telephoned her.
 We were having dinner when it started to rain.
  Ram went home early because it was snowing.

Note that some verbs cannot be used in continuous/progressive tenses.

We often use the Past Continuous tense to "set the scene" in stories. We use it to describe
the background situation at the moment when the action begins. Often, the story starts with
the Past Continuous tense and then moves into the Past Simple tense. Here is an example:

"James Bond was driving through town. It was raining. The wind was blowing hard.

Nobody was walking in the streets. Suddenly, Bond saw the killer in a telephone box..."

Past Continuous + Past Simple

We often use the Past Continuous tense with the Past Simple tense. We use the Past
Continuous to express a long action. And we use the Past Simple to express a short action
that happens in the middle of the long action. We can join the two ideas
with when or while.

In the following example, we have two actions:

1. long action (watching TV), expressed with Past Continuous

2. short action (telephoned), expressed with Past Simple

past present future

long action:    
I was watching TV from 7pm to
9pm.

8pm  

     

short action:    
You phoned at 8pm.
We can join these two actions with when:

 I was watching TV when you telephoned.

Notice that "when you telephoned" is also a way of defining the time (8pm).

We use:

 when + short action (Past Simple)

 while + long action (Past Continuous)

There are four basic combinations:

  I was walking past the car when it exploded.

Whe the car exploded   I was walking past it.

n

  The car exploded while I was walking past it.

Whil I was walking past the car   it exploded.

e

Notice that the long action and short action are relative.

 "Watching TV" took two hours. "Telephoned" took a few seconds.

 "Walking past the car" took a few seconds. "Exploded" took milliseconds.
 TOPIC 6: PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS

The present perfect continuous tense (also known as the present perfect progressive tense)

shows that something started in the past and is continuing at the present time. The present

perfect continuous is formed using the construction has/have been + the present

participle (root + -ing).

I have been reading War and Peace for a month now.

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In this sentence, using the present perfect continuous verb tense conveys that reading War

and Peace is an activity that began sometime in the past and is not yet finished in the

present (which is understandable in this case, given the length of Tolstoy’s weighty tome).

Recently and lately are words that we often find with verbs in the present perfect

continuous tense.

Mia has been competing in flute competitions recently. (And she will continue to do so.)

I haven’t been feeling well lately. (And I am still sick now.)

Recently, I’ve been misplacing my wallet and keys. (Because I sure don’t know where they
are.)
Of course, not all verbs are compatible with continuous action. Some examples of such

verbs are to be, to arrive, and to own.

I have been owning my Mazda since 2007.

I have owned my Mazda since 2007. (present perfect tense)

Gus has been being late for work recently.

Gus has been late for work recently. (present perfect tense)