Would/ would always

USE 1 Habit in the past

Like "used to" and Simple Past, "would" expresses the idea that something was an old habit which stopped in the past. It says that an action was often repeated in the past, but it is not usually done now. Unlike "used to" and Simple Past, "would" suggests that someone willingly acted that way and sometimes expresses annoyance or amusement at the habit. It also often suggests the habit was extreme. To express the opposite idea, we can say "would never" to indicate that someone never did something in the past, but now they do.

Examples:

• She would send me strange birthday gifts.

• Sam and Mary would always choose the most exotic vacation destinations.

• Sally would not always arrive early to class. She came late once or twice.

• Ned would show up at our house without calling first.

• Mindy would not always walk to school. Sometimes, she took the bus.

• Christine would come late to the meetings.

• Jeff would never pay for drinks when we went out together with our friends.

Note: "Would/ would always" is not exactly the same as "used to" or the Simple Past. "Would/ would always" cannot be used to talk about past facts or generalizations. "Would/ would always" is not used with state verbs. It can only be used for repeated actions or habits.

Examples:

• Sarah was shy, but now she is very outgoing. Correct

• Sarah used to be shy, but now she is very outgoing. Correct

• Sarah would always be shy, but now she is very outgoing. Not Correct

Time expressions used with the Past Simple:

yesterday, then, when, How long ago…? Last night/week/month/year/Tuesday, etc., three days/weeks, etc. ago, in 1997, when he/she was young, etc.

There are some verbs in English which are considered to be troublesome.

TRANSITIVE	INTRANSITIVE	Raise, set, and lay are transitive verbs; they are followed by an object. Rise, sit, and lie are intransitive; i.e., they are NOT followed by an object.* In (a): raised is followed by the object hand. In (b): rises is not followed by an object. Note: Lay and lie are troublesome for native speakers too and are frequently misused. Hang as a regular verb means to kill someone with a rope around ones neck.
(a) raise, raised, raised (b) rise, rose, risen Tom raised his hand. The sun rises in the east.
(c) set, set, set (d) sit, sat, sat I will set the book on the desk. I sit in the front row.
(e) lay, laid, laid (f) lie,** lay, lain I am laying the book on the desk. He is lying on his bed. (g) hang, hanged, hanged (h) hang, hung, hung They hanged the murderer by the neck I hung my clothes in the closet.