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Complete the sentences about American life many years ago. Use the positive or negative form of used to and the words given.

People got their mail at the town store. They _________ (get) their mail at home.

People ________ (have) washing machines.

Women _______ (make) clothes for their children. They _____ (buy) them in the stores.

User Rick Regan
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Answer:

They didn't use to get their mail at home.

People didn't use to have washing machines.

Women used to make clothes for their children. They didn't use to buy them in the stores.

Step-by-step explanation:

We use the phrase used to + infinitive to talk about past situations that are no longer true. The negative form of used to is didn't use to. People often add -d to use (didn't used to), but many consider this incorrect, which is why you should avoid doing this.

The lives of people who lived a long time ago and our lives are completely different. In the given sentences, we should use the forms that express this.

  • Now, we get our mail at home. This was different in the past. This is why we should say that people didn't use to get their mail at home.
  • We have washing machines now, but people didn't use to have them. They used to wash clothes by hand. This is why negation should be used in the second sentence as well.
  • Now, we buy clothes at stores. However, in the past, women used to make them and didn't use to buy them. This is the positive-negative combination you should use.
User Oaziz
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