used to

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"Great Britain used to have that, and I think that the only way to stop it is to make the consequences a lot more severe than what they are."

From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026

That includes increased demand on electricity grids that are often reliant on fossil fuels, and on local water supplies used to cool the hot servers inside.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

Her first major contribution to the field of anxiety and fear-based disorders was in the 1970s and ’80s, with a therapy called exposure and response prevention that she used to treat patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

Part of the challenge lies in the language used to describe these features.

From Science Daily • Apr. 3, 2026

She led me away from the house then, to the garden bench set against the back wall—the bench where she and Papi always used to sit on summer evenings when they wanted to be alone.

From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo