Forum newsfeeds
Forum Newsfeeds


Sites for Teachers

Sites for Teachers


Go Back   UsingEnglish.com ESL Forum > Analysing Language > Text Analysis and Statistics
Register FAQDonate Members List Mark Forums Read Tags

Reply
 
LinkBack (1) Thread Tools Display Modes
  1 links from elsewhere to this Post. Click to view. #1 (permalink)  
Old 11-Nov-2005, 15:58
Newbie
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Country: England
First Language: English
Posts: 1
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
John James is on a distinguished road
Default used to / would

What is the ratio of usage between 'used to' and 'would' for past habits or conditions?
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!
Reply With Quote
  #2 (permalink)  
Old 12-Nov-2005, 07:44
Editor, UsingEnglish.com
 
Join Date: Nov 2002
Country: UK
Location: Phnom Penh
First Language: English
Posts: 24,929
Thanks: 1
Thanked 154 Times in 151 Posts
Tdol has disabled reputation
Default Re: used to / would

I honestly don't know- it would be tricky to work it out without a close examination of the rsults because 'would' has so many other uses. In Google, 'would' gets 1,470,000,000 results and 'used to' 597,000,000. Both are skewed, as would has other uses and 'used to' could be 'be used to', etc. However, the numbers suggest to me that 'used to' is out in front.
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!
Reply With Quote
  #3 (permalink)  
Old 14-Nov-2005, 02:01
Steven D's Avatar
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Country: U.S.A.
First Language: English
Posts: 835
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Steven D is an unknown quantity at this point
Default Re: used to / would

Quote:
Originally Posted by tdol
I honestly don't know- it would be tricky to work it out without a close examination of the rsults because 'would' has so many other uses. In Google, 'would' gets 1,470,000,000 results and 'used to' 597,000,000. Both are skewed, as would has other uses and 'used to' could be 'be used to', etc. However, the numbers suggest to me that 'used to' is out in front.

I think "used to" probably occurs more frequently in spoken language and "would", I think, would occur more frequently in narratives and written work. It's hard to say though.
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!
Reply With Quote
  #4 (permalink)  
Old 14-Nov-2005, 05:18
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Country: India
Location: Delhi
First Language: Hindi
Posts: 146
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
rajan is on a distinguished road
Default Re: used to / would

Quote:
Originally Posted by X Mode
I think "used to" probably occurs more frequently in spoken language and "would", I think, would occur more frequently in narratives and written work. It's hard to say though.
My opinion is -

Used to / would is used for Action Verb / Stative Verb
Would is used with only Action Verb
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!
Reply With Quote
  #5 (permalink)  
Old 14-Nov-2005, 05:26
Steven D's Avatar
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Country: U.S.A.
First Language: English
Posts: 835
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Steven D is an unknown quantity at this point
Default Re: used to / would

Quote:
Originally Posted by rajan
My opinion is -

Used to / would is used for Action Verb / Stative Verb
Would is used with only Action Verb
Right, "used to" is used to express states and repeated or habitual actions, whereas "would" is not used to express states.
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!
Reply With Quote
  #6 (permalink)  
Old 05-Jan-2006, 12:28
Newbie
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Country: MACEDONIA
First Language: M
Posts: 1
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
SASHO MKD is on a distinguished road
Default Re: used to / would

I Use To Go To A Football Match
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!
Reply With Quote
  #7 (permalink)  
Old 06-Jan-2006, 12:12
Newbie
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Country: Malaysia
First Language: English
Posts: 3
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
eddykk is on a distinguished road
Default Re: used to / would

Quote:
Originally Posted by SASHO MKD
I Use To Go To A Football Match
as mentioned as Steven D, your sentence is matched with the requirement of habitual actions.

it should be "I useD to go to a football match" ... past tense, "used"
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!
Reply With Quote
  #8 (permalink)  
Old 07-Jan-2006, 04:47
Editor, UsingEnglish.com
 
Join Date: Nov 2002
Country: UK
Location: Phnom Penh
First Language: English
Posts: 24,929
Thanks: 1
Thanked 154 Times in 151 Posts
Tdol has disabled reputation
Default Re: used to / would

It should be 'used' and 'matches' would make more sense to me for a habitual action.
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!
Reply With Quote
  #9 (permalink)  
Old 07-Apr-2006, 14:57
Newbie
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Country: vietnam
First Language: vietnamese
Posts: 1
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
hoangquanghuy72 is on a distinguished road
Default Re: used to / would

Quote:
Originally Posted by tdol
I honestly don't know- it would be tricky to work it out without a close examination of the rsults because 'would' has so many other uses. In Google, 'would' gets 1,470,000,000 results and 'used to' 597,000,000. Both are skewed, as would has other uses and 'used to' could be 'be used to', etc. However, the numbers suggest to me that 'used to' is out in front.
As I know, used to and would have the same meaning when we mention about "state" in the past for example: It used to be a theater = It would be a theater. However when we mention about "action" the usage is grammartically different for example.
I would be happy if you slowed down the car.
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!
Reply With Quote
  #10 (permalink)  
Old 06-Nov-2006, 11:54
Harry Smith's Avatar
Key Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Country: Armenia
Location: Moscow,Russia
First Language: Armenian
Posts: 2,298
Thanks: 0
Thanked 3 Times in 3 Posts
Harry Smith is on a distinguished road
Default Re: used to / would

Quote:
Originally Posted by John James View Post
What is the ratio of usage between 'used to' and 'would' for past habits or conditions?
Used to is a past habit, whereas would shows a kind of wish in the past.
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!
Reply With Quote
Reply
Tags: ,



LinkBacks (?)
LinkBack to this Thread: http://www.usingenglish.com/forum/text-analysis-statistics/16510-used-would.html
Posted By For Type Date
would and shoud This thread Refback 07-Nov-2006 12:24

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On


All times are GMT. The time now is 06:42.



vBulletin, Copyright ©2000 - 2008, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Search Engine Friendly URLs by vBSEO 3.1.0
Copyright © 2002 - 2008 UsingEnglish.com