Forum für Englischlehrer

Betreff: Re: used to/usually

Tobi (79.197.99.*) schrieb am 12.10.09 um 22:37 Uhr

Veronika wrote:
>
> Help!!
> I need somebody to explain to me, meaningwise as well as
> grammarwise the difference between I usually ate bananas/I
> used to eat bananas/I would usually eat bananas/I usually
> would have eaten bananas
> If I use "I was used to" do I have to put the
> following verb into the -ing form?
>

"I usually ate bananas" -> simple past (talking about something you did in the past. "Usually" explains this action as a regular action, which you no longer do regularly. "Usually" ordinarily stands, in this case, in a certain context, which is mostly a repeating pattern/custom within a social situation. The context therefore is "usually" the same in which you ate bananas.)

"I used to eat bananas" -> simple past (The meaning is very much the same like your first sentence, except that "I used to ..." is not so much bound to a "usual" pattern, for instance a social pattern/custom. It stands more in a generel way.)

"I would usually eat bananas" -> conditional II which requires an if-clause and is built with if + simple past, conditional I (e.g: If the time was right, I would usually eat bananas.) Conditional II stands for an unlikely situation. In the mentioned example it is unlikely that there is a right time to eat bananas.

"I usually would have eaten bananas" -> conditional III which requires an if-clause and is built with if + past perfect, conditional II (e.g. If the time had been right, I usually would have eaten bananas) Conditional III is used to express the impossibility or most unlikelyhood of an action or situation to come up. In this case it is almost impossible that the time is right to eat bananas -> you do not eat bananas at all.

"I was used to" requires an infinitive in most cases. There are some occasions though were a gerund (-ing form) follows. This depends on the situation you use "I was used to" in. I am afraid a generel all knowing answer to this question is, as far as I know, impossible to give.

Hope I could help.
Kind regards,
Tobi