1. Situations and habits in the
present and past

2. This is Kate Morrison

3. Now
• She’ll usually read fairy tales to her children.
• Her husband goes through phases of reading
thick novels.

4. • She tends to go to a good musical whenever she
can.
• She tends not to pay much attention to gossip
magazines.

5. • She seldom gets to find the time for the cinema.
• Her husband is always listening to his iPod.

6. EXPRESSING HABITS
In the present:
•
Present simple + expression of frequency
She seldom gets …
•
Tend to / Tend not to + INF
She tends to …
She tends not to ...
•
Go through phases of + ING (temporary habits)
Her husband goes through phases of …
•
Will (emphatic)
She’ll usually read …
•
Present Continuous + frequency adverb (annoying)
Her husband is always …. …

7. STATE VERBS
There are some verbs
which are nearly always
used in a simple rather
than a continuous
tense.
These are “state” verbs
and they usually refer to
thoughts, feelings,belonging
and the senses.

8.  THOUGHTS:
believe, know, mean, realise, recognise,
remember, suppose, understand, feel, think.
 FEELINGS:
adore, dislike, despise, hate, love, want, wish,
prefer,…
 BELONGING:
belong, have/have got (=posses), own, posses,…
 SENSES:
smell, taste, hear, see.
 OTHER STATE VERBS:
seem, look, look like, matter,…

9. Some verbs have a stative meaning and
a different active meaning:
 She’s got a beautiful house
 We’re having an interesting conversation.
 It tastes delicious
 I’m tasting the sauce.
 I think you’ll pass your exam
 I’m thinking about you.

10. Ten years ago…
• She went to University from Monday to Friday.
• She used to study with some friends at the
library.

11. • She lived in the UK with her parents.
• She would go for a drink with her friends on
Saturday.

12. PAST SIMPLE
We use “past simple” to:
 Talk about permanent, long-term situations in the
past:
She lived with her family.
 Refer to past habits:
She went to University from Monday to Friday.

13. USED TO / WOULD
We can use both “used to” and “would” to
talk about past habits when we are
emphasising that they are no longer true:
 She used to study at the library
 She would go for a drink with her friends
on Saturday.
“Used to” is much more common than would

14.  “Used to” can also refer to states:
She used to be crazy about Michael Jackson.
We can’t use “would” for that.
Don’t confuse “used to”, which is a past
tense, with “be/get used to (doing), which
can be present, past or future:
She’s used to living in the States.
She’s getting used to driving to work.

15. Expressions of frequency
• Classify these adverbs and adverbial phrases on
the frequency scale below
once in a blue moon
every now and again
from time to time
every so often
seldom
rarely, if ever
once in a while occasionally
generally
by and large
NEVER
RARELY
SOMETIMES
as a rule
hardly ever
USUALLY
ALWAYS
KEY: NEVER (rarely, if ever, once in a blue moon), RARELY (hardly ever, seldom, occasionally, once in a while, from time to time),
SOMETIMES (every now and again, every so often, generally, by and large), USUALLY (as a rule) ALWAYS.

16. Customs
BE/ GET USED TO + ing:
What’s the difference between these two
sentences?
“I have to get used to going to bed earlier”
“I’m used to going to bed before 10”