used to

British  

/ juːst /

adjective

1. made familiar with; accustomed to

   I am used to hitchhiking

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verb

1. (takes an infinitive or implied infinitive) used as an auxiliary to express habitual or accustomed actions, states, etc, taking place in the past but not continuing into the present

   I don't drink these days, but I used to

   I used to fish here every day

used to Idioms  

1. Accustomed or habituated to. This expression is often put as , as in I'm not used to driving a manual-shift car , or She can't get used to calling him Dad . [Early 1500s]

2. Formerly. This sense is used with a following verb to indicate a past state, as in I used to ride my bicycle to the post office , or This used to be the best restaurant in town . [Late 1800s]

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Usage

The most common negative form of used to is didn't used to (or didn't use to ), but in formal contexts used not to is preferred

Example Sentences

That same $64 million could permanently remove the pollution of 12 times as many gasoline cars if used to purchase new electric vehicles.

From Los Angeles Times

When shipbuilding finally ended at the site in the 1970s, it was used to build oil rigs for a time before the yard finally closed in 2001.

From BBC

“A college degree used to be much more competitive in the job market,” he said.

From The Wall Street Journal

"The biggest problem with Pakistani medicine was that we used to receive counterfeit and fake medicines," ministry spokesman Sharafat Zaman told AFP.

From Barron's

A total of 13 other witnesses used to support the prosecution case have now told the BBC the police pressured them to embellish their statements or lie in court.

From BBC