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'Used to do' describes past habits or states that no longer exist; 'be used to doing' describes being accustomed to something.
Side-by-side comparison
"Used to + infinitive" talks about past habits or situations that no longer exist: "I used to play tennis". It only exists in the past; there is no "use to" in the present.
She used to hate vegetables when she was little, but now she eats them every day.
I used to walk to school every morning, it took about twenty minutes each way.
Did you use to play any sport when you were at school? I never knew you were athletic.
"Be used to + gerund" talks about being accustomed to something, in any tense: "I am used to getting up early". The preposition "to" requires a gerund, not an infinitive.
She is used to waking up early, she has done it every day her whole life.
It took him a few months, but he is now fully used to living on his own.
She was not used to the cold when she first moved north, but she adapted eventually.
Common mistake
- •Most frequent error: confusing the two structures because of their visual similarity.
- •"I am used to wake up early" = wrong.
- •With "be used to," the following verb is GERUND: "I am used to WAKING UP early." "I used to working late" = wrong.
- •With past-habit "used to," the following verb is INFINITIVE: "I used to WORK late." Key signal: if there is a form of "to be" before "used to" = BE USED TO + -ING (accustomed).
- •No "to be" = USED TO + INFINITIVE (past habit).
Trick to remember it
Signal trick: look for a form of "to be" (am, is, are, was, were) BEFORE "used to." With "to be" + "used to" = accustomedness = next verb is -ING: "I AM used to working." Without "to be" = past habit = next verb is infinitive: "I used to work." Key difference: "I used to drive a truck" = I drove one in the past (no longer do). "I am used to driving a truck" = I am accustomed to it (I find it normal).
Quick rule
- •Used to + INFINITIVE = PAST habit or state that no longer exists.
- •Be used to + GERUND (-ing) = to be ACCUSTOMED (any tense).
- •The verb "to be" before "used to" completely changes the meaning and grammar.
Did you know?
There is a third structure that completes the family: GET USED TO + GERUND = the process of becoming accustomed (dynamic, ongoing). "I am getting used to the new software" = I am in the process of adapting. "I got used to the commute after a month" = I became accustomed to the commute (completed process). The three forms a logical progression: "I used to take the bus" (past habit, no longer) → "I'm getting used to driving to work" (adaptation in progress) → "I'm used to driving to work" (fully adapted). Learning all three together makes the whole system click.
Practise what you learned
Exercise 1 · Pick the right one
I _____ wake up early. I had to be at work by 7am.
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
She _____ working long hours. She's been doing it for years.
Exercise 3 · Form the word
Related word pairs
'Be used to + -ing' = to be accustomed (it already feels normal); 'get used to + -ing' = to become accustomed (the process).
Some verbs take a gerund (-ing), others take an infinitive (to + verb), and some take both with different meanings.
'Used to' speaks of past habits that no longer happen; 'usually' speaks of habitual actions in the present.
'Used to' works for both past habits and states; 'would' works only for repeated actions, never for states.
Bryan López
Founder of SpeakUP Academy