Used to - Didn´t use to - Used not to - Never used to
Hello everyone!

Used to - negative form

Didn´t use to - Used not to - Never used to

I´ve heard that the negative form with "Didn´t" is quite informal, widely used and grammatically correct. However, some say it´s wrong.

So, what´s the everyday and correct way of using this structure in negative form?

1 - I didn´t use to drink coffee.

2 - I used not drink coffee.

3 - I never used to drink coffee.

Thank you :)

Question

Used to - Didn´t use to - Used not to - Never used to
Hello everyone!

Used to - negative form

Didn´t use to - Used not to - Never used to

I´ve heard that the negative form with "Didn´t" is quite informal, widely used and grammatically correct. However, some say it´s wrong.

So, what´s the everyday and correct way of using this structure in negative form?

1 - I didn´t use to drink coffee.

2 - I used not drink coffee.

3 - I never used to drink coffee.

Thank you :)

Answer

As Paul says, 1 and 3 are both correct and common, and 1 would be the usual way of saying it in the US. 2 is incorrect, but can be made correct if changed to "I used not to drink coffee". I think that's not common in the US, but is heard in the UK. There is also "I used to not drink coffee", which to me sounds awkward and perhaps even incorrect, but people do say it.

Answer

1 and 3 are correct. You hear both.

2 is not correct.

I think you're getting a bit confused with 'didn't use to.' 'Didn't use to' is perfectly correct and common. You may however hear some people say 'didn't useD to' with an extra 'd'. This is the one that people consider incorrect (although it is not uncommon to hear.)

Answer

1 and 3 are okay.

With 2... A simple past negation would be "It used not to be this way." This would be an uncommon and archaic way of expressing the idea. Instead, using an emphatic tense, we get:
It didn't use to be this way.