used to (correct usage)

10/05/2013 09:37

Wrong use of the verb phrase "used to"

Often times, we do say things like:
#I used to tell Sade about my Dad.
#I used to go there on Mondays.
#We used to do it everyday

Whenever, we use "used to", we refer to an action that has taken place in the past. This means that such an an action no longer exists. If the message you are passing across in any of the above statements is still active, you are not speaking English language! They all refer to past incidents in their different contexts. For example, it is wrong for you to say : 
#I used to eat eba on Sundays. Even it is what I am eating tomorrow.

An expression like the above is not only contradictory but also redundant.

Rather, say:
* I eat eba on Sundays,
# I do tell / I tell Sade about my Dad
#I do go/ I go there on Mondays.
#We do it everyday.

We also have expressions like 
#I am used to the habit
#Mertasacker is not yet used to playing in the Premier League.

In any sentence like these, we use "used to" in its passive form. The sense it carries here differs from when used as a phrasal verb. Here it is functioning as an adjective meaning "to be familiar with something or someone".

Remember, there is nothing like 'use to', whether you are referring to the past or present.