Live vs Living usage in the given example

Question

In Oxfordonlineenglish.com, I found a question in grammar test online as follows,

______ spent time abroad when I was a student, I found it easier to get used to ______ in another country.

Options:

1. to have, living

2. having, live

3. having, living

4. have, live

And my answer was,

Having spent time abroad when I was a student, I found it easier to get used to live in another country.

But the correct answer given by the website was,

Having spent time abroad when I was a student, I found it easier to get used to living in another country.

I'm a little confused here, why "living" is correct and why not "live".

Answer 1

The phrase to get used to something (don't confuse it with the expression used to do something) requires a noun or anything noun-like in form such as a gerund. And such is the case with your example here. living is the gerund form of the verb to live. That's why living is the correct choice.

Example:

I just can't get used to this new mouse I bought the other day. I think I'm going to still continue using the old one.

Answer 2

"Used to" in the sentence presented is an adjective that follows a noun phrase, a pronoun or the -ing form of a verb. It means accustomed/habituated to or familiar with something.

So you say .....to get used to living, not to get used to live.

"Used to" is also used as a verb to refer to repeated actions in the past. In this case it follows an infinitive. For example;

I used to live in London.