Using 'would' or 'used to' with a time reference in a different sentence
In a test there are such sentences:
"When I was little, I shared a bedroom with my sister Catherine. As I was eight years her junior, I obviously
(used to go / would go) to bed earlier than her."
The test says that the only correct answer is "used to go".
I've read in the rules that we can use would "to talk about repeated past actions". Also the rules say that "would should not be used unless it has already been established that the time frame is in the past, while used to does not require this" (http://www.learnersdictionary.com/qa/the-difference-between-used-to-and-would).
But doesn't the phrase "When I was little" set a time reference? Or it's not related to the second sentence? Or it should be in the same sentence? Or maybe there is another rule I missed there?
My question is: can we use would go there, and, if not, why?
grammaticality past-tense phrase-usage would used-to
asked 23 hours ago
ErnestErnest
61
New contributor
Ernest is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |
In a test there are such sentences:
"When I was little, I shared a bedroom with my sister Catherine. As I was eight years her junior, I obviously
(used to go / would go) to bed earlier than her."
The test says that the only correct answer is "used to go".
I've read in the rules that we can use would "to talk about repeated past actions". Also the rules say that "would should not be used unless it has already been established that the time frame is in the past, while used to does not require this" (http://www.learnersdictionary.com/qa/the-difference-between-used-to-and-would).
But doesn't the phrase "When I was little" set a time reference? Or it's not related to the second sentence? Or it should be in the same sentence? Or maybe there is another rule I missed there?
My question is: can we use would go there, and, if not, why?
grammaticality past-tense phrase-usage would used-to
asked 23 hours ago
ErnestErnest
61
New contributor
Ernest is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
1
Oftentimes the "right" answer is based on what the teacher was recently teaching. In your example, I would have no problem using either. Also, keep in mind that the editor on Merriam Webster saying something is "awkward and ungrammatical" is just her way of saying "to me it doesn't sound right." Of course there are things that are definitely "wrong" such as saying "I are have a headache," but many things are flexible. A good teacher or test provider will see that the question is ambiguous and change it.
– michael_timofeev
17 hours ago
Personally, I would actually tend to use would more. But both are perfectly acceptable. Unless there is something that's hasn't been made clear, the only objection here is based on subjective style, not on grammar.
– Jason Bassford
16 hours ago
I think either word is fine, though when would is used to describe a past habitual action, an adverb like obviously usually comes before it - so I think used to go is a better answer, but I also think it's a bit unfair to mark would as wrong.
– Minty
11 hours ago
@Minty, when you said "an adverb like obviously usually comes before it [would]", did you mean "Obviously I would"? The original phrase in question was "I obviously would go to bed earlier".
– Ernest
6 hours ago
@Ernest yes, sorry I said before when I meant after. For me As I was eight years her junior, I would obviously go to bed earlier than her is the natural word order.
– Minty
5 hours ago
add a comment |
In a test there are such sentences:
"When I was little, I shared a bedroom with my sister Catherine. As I was eight years her junior, I obviously
(used to go / would go) to bed earlier than her."
The test says that the only correct answer is "used to go".
I've read in the rules that we can use would "to talk about repeated past actions". Also the rules say that "would should not be used unless it has already been established that the time frame is in the past, while used to does not require this" (http://www.learnersdictionary.com/qa/the-difference-between-used-to-and-would).
But doesn't the phrase "When I was little" set a time reference? Or it's not related to the second sentence? Or it should be in the same sentence? Or maybe there is another rule I missed there?
My question is: can we use would go there, and, if not, why?
grammaticality past-tense phrase-usage would used-to
asked 23 hours ago
ErnestErnest
61
New contributor
Ernest is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
In a test there are such sentences:
"When I was little, I shared a bedroom with my sister Catherine. As I was eight years her junior, I obviously
(used to go / would go) to bed earlier than her."
The test says that the only correct answer is "used to go".
I've read in the rules that we can use would "to talk about repeated past actions". Also the rules say that "would should not be used unless it has already been established that the time frame is in the past, while used to does not require this" (http://www.learnersdictionary.com/qa/the-difference-between-used-to-and-would).
But doesn't the phrase "When I was little" set a time reference? Or it's not related to the second sentence? Or it should be in the same sentence? Or maybe there is another rule I missed there?
My question is: can we use would go there, and, if not, why?
grammaticality past-tense phrase-usage would used-to
grammaticality past-tense phrase-usage would used-to
asked 23 hours ago
ErnestErnest
61
New contributor
Ernest is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
asked 23 hours ago
ErnestErnest
61
New contributor
Ernest is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited 21 hours ago
Ernest
asked 23 hours ago
ErnestErnest
61
New contributor
Ernest is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
asked 23 hours ago
ErnestErnest
61
asked 23 hours ago
ErnestErnest
61
61
New contributor
Ernest is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
Ernest is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Ernest is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
1
Oftentimes the "right" answer is based on what the teacher was recently teaching. In your example, I would have no problem using either. Also, keep in mind that the editor on Merriam Webster saying something is "awkward and ungrammatical" is just her way of saying "to me it doesn't sound right." Of course there are things that are definitely "wrong" such as saying "I are have a headache," but many things are flexible. A good teacher or test provider will see that the question is ambiguous and change it.
– michael_timofeev
17 hours ago
Personally, I would actually tend to use would more. But both are perfectly acceptable. Unless there is something that's hasn't been made clear, the only objection here is based on subjective style, not on grammar.
– Jason Bassford
16 hours ago
I think either word is fine, though when would is used to describe a past habitual action, an adverb like obviously usually comes before it - so I think used to go is a better answer, but I also think it's a bit unfair to mark would as wrong.
– Minty
11 hours ago
@Minty, when you said "an adverb like obviously usually comes before it [would]", did you mean "Obviously I would"? The original phrase in question was "I obviously would go to bed earlier".
– Ernest
6 hours ago
@Ernest yes, sorry I said before when I meant after. For me As I was eight years her junior, I would obviously go to bed earlier than her is the natural word order.
– Minty
5 hours ago
add a comment |
1
Oftentimes the "right" answer is based on what the teacher was recently teaching. In your example, I would have no problem using either. Also, keep in mind that the editor on Merriam Webster saying something is "awkward and ungrammatical" is just her way of saying "to me it doesn't sound right." Of course there are things that are definitely "wrong" such as saying "I are have a headache," but many things are flexible. A good teacher or test provider will see that the question is ambiguous and change it.
– michael_timofeev
17 hours ago
Personally, I would actually tend to use would more. But both are perfectly acceptable. Unless there is something that's hasn't been made clear, the only objection here is based on subjective style, not on grammar.
– Jason Bassford
16 hours ago
I think either word is fine, though when would is used to describe a past habitual action, an adverb like obviously usually comes before it - so I think used to go is a better answer, but I also think it's a bit unfair to mark would as wrong.
– Minty
11 hours ago
@Minty, when you said "an adverb like obviously usually comes before it [would]", did you mean "Obviously I would"? The original phrase in question was "I obviously would go to bed earlier".
– Ernest
6 hours ago
@Ernest yes, sorry I said before when I meant after. For me As I was eight years her junior, I would obviously go to bed earlier than her is the natural word order.
– Minty
5 hours ago
1
1
Oftentimes the "right" answer is based on what the teacher was recently teaching. In your example, I would have no problem using either. Also, keep in mind that the editor on Merriam Webster saying something is "awkward and ungrammatical" is just her way of saying "to me it doesn't sound right." Of course there are things that are definitely "wrong" such as saying "I are have a headache," but many things are flexible. A good teacher or test provider will see that the question is ambiguous and change it.
– michael_timofeev
17 hours ago
Oftentimes the "right" answer is based on what the teacher was recently teaching. In your example, I would have no problem using either. Also, keep in mind that the editor on Merriam Webster saying something is "awkward and ungrammatical" is just her way of saying "to me it doesn't sound right." Of course there are things that are definitely "wrong" such as saying "I are have a headache," but many things are flexible. A good teacher or test provider will see that the question is ambiguous and change it.
– michael_timofeev
17 hours ago
Personally, I would actually tend to use would more. But both are perfectly acceptable. Unless there is something that's hasn't been made clear, the only objection here is based on subjective style, not on grammar.
– Jason Bassford
16 hours ago
Personally, I would actually tend to use would more. But both are perfectly acceptable. Unless there is something that's hasn't been made clear, the only objection here is based on subjective style, not on grammar.
– Jason Bassford
16 hours ago
I think either word is fine, though when would is used to describe a past habitual action, an adverb like obviously usually comes before it - so I think used to go is a better answer, but I also think it's a bit unfair to mark would as wrong.
– Minty
11 hours ago
I think either word is fine, though when would is used to describe a past habitual action, an adverb like obviously usually comes before it - so I think used to go is a better answer, but I also think it's a bit unfair to mark would as wrong.
– Minty
11 hours ago
@Minty, when you said "an adverb like obviously usually comes before it [would]", did you mean "Obviously I would"? The original phrase in question was "I obviously would go to bed earlier".
– Ernest
6 hours ago
@Minty, when you said "an adverb like obviously usually comes before it [would]", did you mean "Obviously I would"? The original phrase in question was "I obviously would go to bed earlier".
– Ernest
6 hours ago
@Ernest yes, sorry I said before when I meant after. For me As I was eight years her junior, I would obviously go to bed earlier than her is the natural word order.
– Minty
5 hours ago
@Ernest yes, sorry I said before when I meant after. For me As I was eight years her junior, I would obviously go to bed earlier than her is the natural word order.
– Minty
5 hours ago
add a comment |
0
active
oldest
votes
Your Answer
StackExchange.ready(function() {
var channelOptions = {
tags: "".split(" "),
id: "97"
};
initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);
StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function() {
// Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled) {
StackExchange.using("snippets", function() {
createEditor();
});
}
else {
createEditor();
}
});
function createEditor() {
StackExchange.prepareEditor({
heartbeatType: 'answer',
autoActivateHeartbeat: false,
convertImagesToLinks: false,
noModals: true,
showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
reputationToPostImages: null,
bindNavPrevention: true,
postfix: "",
imageUploader: {
brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
allowUrls: true
},
noCode: true, onDemand: true,
discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
});
}
});
Ernest is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function () {
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fenglish.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f491331%2fusing-would-or-used-to-with-a-time-reference-in-a-different-sentence%23new-answer', 'question_page');
}
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
0
active
oldest
votes
0
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
Ernest is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
Ernest is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
Ernest is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
Ernest is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
Thanks for contributing an answer to English Language & Usage Stack Exchange!
- Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!
But avoid …
- Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.
- Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.
To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function () {
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fenglish.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f491331%2fusing-would-or-used-to-with-a-time-reference-in-a-different-sentence%23new-answer', 'question_page');
}
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
1
Oftentimes the "right" answer is based on what the teacher was recently teaching. In your example, I would have no problem using either. Also, keep in mind that the editor on Merriam Webster saying something is "awkward and ungrammatical" is just her way of saying "to me it doesn't sound right." Of course there are things that are definitely "wrong" such as saying "I are have a headache," but many things are flexible. A good teacher or test provider will see that the question is ambiguous and change it.
– michael_timofeev
17 hours ago
Personally, I would actually tend to use would more. But both are perfectly acceptable. Unless there is something that's hasn't been made clear, the only objection here is based on subjective style, not on grammar.
– Jason Bassford
16 hours ago
I think either word is fine, though when would is used to describe a past habitual action, an adverb like obviously usually comes before it - so I think used to go is a better answer, but I also think it's a bit unfair to mark would as wrong.
– Minty
11 hours ago
@Minty, when you said "an adverb like obviously usually comes before it [would]", did you mean "Obviously I would"? The original phrase in question was "I obviously would go to bed earlier".
– Ernest
6 hours ago
@Ernest yes, sorry I said before when I meant after. For me As I was eight years her junior, I would obviously go to bed earlier than her is the natural word order.
– Minty
5 hours ago