In what cases was and were written? Rules for using the verbs Was and Were

If you came to our blog to find out the was, were rule in English, then you have come to exactly the right place. We will look at how and when these forms of the verb “to be” are used and why our life is impossible without this knowledge.

First and most important:

was, were in English - past form of the verb “to be” !Past forms are used without the particle “to”, because are not infinitive forms of the verb!

The use of was, were in English, the rule:

1. To the singular subject we add “was”

I, He, She, It- singular persons who are friends only with “was”!

2. To the plural subject we add “were”

We, You, They- plural persons who are friends only with “were”! For example:

P.S. Do you know why “You” is plural? After all, at school we were taught that this translates as the pronoun “you”. All wrong!

In fact, Americans are so well-mannered that they always address each other exclusively as “you.” This is precisely why this pronoun is considered plural.

But even in Russian, we always use the pronoun “You” only in the plural, even when addressing one person (but in a respectful form). For example:

Second and also important rule:

The use of was, were in English does not use the Past Continuous. This tense speaks of an extended activity (process) that occurred in the past. You will never confuse it with the regular Past Simple because:

1. Continuous- it's always a process.

2. IN Past Continuous we see certain time indications of the process:

When you called I was making a cake for my brother.

As you can see, the exact time is not necessary here; there should be a hint at the moment at which the process lasted.

3. was, were in English they are always basic auxiliary verbs.

There are no differences in the use of our verbs was, were in comparison with the first paragraph. There is only a peculiarity: the predicate will be able to have the ending “ing” (Always only this ending and no other changes to the verb. You don’t need to learn the table of irregular verbs to express your thought in the Past Continuous. Just add the ending “ing” to the main verb.).

Also, it is impossible not to say that was, were in English is used in the passive voice and in a number of laws and rules of a foreign language, but we revealed the most striking functions of these verbs in our article.

If you have an addition to our story about was, were in English, the rules of their use and features, then feel free to write your thoughts in the comments and we will discuss your ideas.

Verb to be in Past Simple

In the present tense (Present Simple) the verb to be has 3 forms: am (singular), is (singular), are (plural), in the past (Past Simple) 2 forms: was (singular) , were (plural).

Past Simple tense circumstances:

1. Yesterday - yesterday

2. Last week (last year, last month)- last week (last year, last month)

3. Last autumn (last spring) - last fall (last spring)

4. 2 years ago - 2 years ago

5. in 1997 - in 1997

6. When I was young - when I was young (when my grandmother was young - when my grandmother was young, being young - being young, in his youth)

7. In childhood - in childhood.

When the verbs were, were ( in what situations)?

- in the same semantic cases as the verbs am, is, are (see memo):

1. When we call person's name:

Her name was Jane. - Her name was Jane.

Their names were Jack and Fred. - Their names were Jack and Fred.

2. When we call age:

Jane was 21 last year. - Jane turned 21 last year.

My parents were 45 last month. - My parents turned 45 last month.

3. When we call location person or group of people.

They were at the party last week. - They were at a party last week.

4. When we describe a person or object.

He was tall and slender. - He was tall and slim.

5. When we list a person’s qualities.

He was smart and generous. - He was smart and generous.

6. In stable expressions:

They were interested in Music 5 years ago. - They were interested in music (as a subject) 5 years ago.

I was fond of basketball when I was young. - I was fond of basketball when I was young.

My sister was good at History when she studied at school. - My sister was a good history student (= she was good at history) when she was at school.

7. Pr Anddescription of weather conditions.

It was warm and slippery last week. - Last week it was warm and slippery.

It was cold and windy this autumn. - This autumn it was cold and windy.

When do we use was, were (with what pronouns)?

Linking verb was we use with all singular pronouns(I, he, she, it) and singular nouns numbers, for example: I was a student (I was a student). John was a student. (John was a student)

Linking verb were we use with all plural pronouns(you, we, they) and plural nouns, for example: They were students (They were students). Our parents were students many years ago (Our parents were students many years ago).

!!!: With a pronoun you we always use a plural linking verb: in the present tense are, in the past were, regardless of how you is translated in the sentence “you” or “you”, since the pronoun you has in English. language only plural form. For example: You were a good specialist. (You/You were/were a good specialist).

At the same time, when we address you, meaning a whole group of people, we use the plural noun after the linking verb: You were good students.(You were good students ).

Formation of a sentence with the verb to be:

Accepted abbreviations

I wasn't = I wasn't (worried)

He was = He’s (khiz) He was not = He "s not = He wasn"t (heightened)

She was = She’s (shiz) She was not = She’s not = She wasn’t (worried)

You were= You’re (yue) You were not = You weren’t (vent)

We were= We’re (vie) We were not = We weren’t (vent)

They were= They're (ve(th)e) They were not = They weren't"t (vent)

WAS and WERE are forms of the irregular verb to be in the Past Simple, that is, in the past tense. Remembering the conjugation is quite easy. In the singular, WAS is used, and in the plural, WERE. With the pronoun YOU, which can be translated as you and as you, you should use WERE.

HE, SHE, IT - WAS

Was for the first person (I, we), for the rest were

Of course, there is no special America with the use of verb forms was / were won't open: form was is used in the singular, and the form were- in plural tense Past Indefinite.

This could close the discussion. But we won't close it. We listen to the song and get inspired by its grammatical aspect:

Beyonc - If I Were A Boy

Why is there a form here? were next to the first person singular pronoun? Blatant ignorance? African American slang?

No, the most strict rules of English grammar. We have before us conditional sentences of the 2nd type

which describe improbable or impossible assumptions relevant to the present time. Beyoncé sweat: If I were a guy, then... (I would do this and that), but she was not a guy and never will be. That is, such proposals do not describe a situation that is possible under certain conditions, but completely unrealistic assumptions.

In such cases, the form were should be used regardless of grammatical number, and the second part should be followed by a modal verb ( should / would / could), in speech after pronouns often shortened to d, and only then the infinitive of the verb describing the action itself.

This is what happens in the song in question:

I would turn off my phone

Tell everyone its broken

So theyd think that I was sleeping alone

An explanation of the features of constructing such sentences, as well as interactive exercises, can be found Here.

Not all English speakers remember this rule. The English language has its own bells and whistles - indicators of illiteracy, that is. And the ability to correctly construct conditional sentences of type 2 is one of them.

Fans of the detective series Inspector Morse may have heard in the episode

Virtual Ghost - Ghost in the Machine,

how Morse chastises Lewis for an error in constructing just such a sentence, at 16 minutes:

Chief Inspector Morse: You are not a bloody mason, are you?

Detective Sergeant Lewis: No such luck - I might have been a Chief Inspector by now if I was.

Chief Inspector Morse: Were, Lewis, if you were. Youll never get on if you cant master your subjunctives.

You can see how the Russian translators handled the matter here. By the way, they did not reflect the play on words in the original: mason and mason - mason.

• Morse: You're not a mason, Lewis, are you?
• Lewis: Bad luck - I would have already risen to Chief Inspector if I had been (that is, if he had been a member of the Masonic Lodge).
• Morse: If only, Lewis, if only I were. You will never advance if you do not master (construction of) conditional sentences (conditional mood).

• Everything is very simple. Was refers to the singular, were - to the plural. At the same time, with the pronoun you, no matter what number it is in, the verb to be is used in the plural, that is, were.

  was-singular, were-plural, do not forget that in modern English the 2nd person does not have a singular pronoun.

  It is very easy to remember that the past tense form of the verb to be varies depending on the number of the pronoun or noun to which the verb refers. The form WAS refers to the singular, WERE - to the plural. It is worth dwelling on the pronoun YOU, in combination with which the verb in the form WERE is used.

  You need to know English. After all, how many new things can be learned by knowing the English language - its rules and pronunciations. Regarding the words was and were, they are used in the following cases:

  was - used in singular

  were - used in plural

• Was or Were

  Here is a table of conjugations for the verb to be in the simple past tense.

  On this page you will find detailed information about conjugating the verb to be in other tenses. And there are also test exercises that you can perform.

If with nouns:

• In the singular the verb was is used. For example, My mother was...
• The verb used in the plural is were. For example, My sisters were...

If with pronouns:

• With I, he, she, it, was is used.
• C we, you, they are used.

Exercises can be done in grammar textbooks, Raymond Murphy has a good textbook, for beginners - red.

Regarding the exercises, I can advise you to look for tables that will help you consolidate the theoretical material and learn it. Something like this:



or this:



The more visual and colorful the material is, the faster a person will remember it.

Was or Were are used from a pronoun. IF the pronoun is singular, then the form Was is used. If the pronoun is plural, then Were is written in the sentence. You just need to remember this.

The verb to be is very common in English and has many different forms. In the past tense the verb is used in the singular as WAS, and in the plural as WERE. You can read more about this verb and other rules of the English language here.

To form a negative you need to put a negative particle not after the verbs was or were.

I was ill. I was n"t at school yesterday.
I was ill. I wasn't at school yesterday.

When my children were little they were afraid of the dark.
When my children were little, they were afraid of the dark. (afraid - adjective)

It was sunny but the sea was n"t warm enough to swim.
It was sunny, but the sea was not warm enough to swim.

There were a lot of black clouds in the sky, but there was no wind .*
There were a lot of black clouds in the sky, but there was no wind (at all).

*When choosing there was or there were look at the noun that stands after these structures.

For that, to ask a question, Verbs was And were need to be delivered before the subject. (In a declarative sentence, the verbs was and were come after the subject):

You were not at work last week. Where were you?
You weren't at work last week. Where have you been?
I was on holiday. My family and I were in Turkey.
I was on vacation. My family and I were in Turkey.

How was your job interview? Were are you nervous?
How did your job interview (go)? Did you worry?
No, I was n"t. But there was a question I couldn't answer.
No. But there was a question that I could not answer.

Was the last episode of "The Walking Dead" good?
Was the last episode of The Walking Dead good?
Yes, it was. There were a lot of intense moments and the ending was very emotional.
Yes. There were many tense moments and the ending was very emotional.

Use of the verbs was and were:
Was and were are past forms of the verb to be. As in , was/were is a linking verb and is necessary in a sentence if it lacks a semantic verb (read, cook, laugh...) Verb be in English it is needed in order to connect different parts of speech in meaning (two nouns, a pronoun and a noun, a noun and an adjective...).

What were your favorite cartoons when you were a child?
What were your favorite cartoons when you were a child?
When I was a child, my favorite cartoon was"Tom and Jerry".
When I was a child, my favorite cartoon was Tom and Jerry.

It was 10 p.m. We were lost, cold and hungry.
It was 10 pm. We were lost, cold and hungry. (lost - adjective)

We couldn't make a phone call because the signal was too weak.
We couldn't call because the signal was too weak.

I'm sure you were not at home last night.
I'm sure you weren't home last night.
The lights were out and all the windows were closed.
The lights were off and all the windows were closed.

The verb “to be” is one of the five hundred irregular verbs, therefore, when forming the past simple (Past Simple), the ending -ed is not added to it, as happens with regular verbs. This verb is radically transformed, replaced by completely different sounding and spelling words: was and were.

So, the verb “to be” in the past simple tense has two forms: was (which is translated as was/was) and were (were). The first form is used with the pronouns I, He, She, It and singular nouns, while the second is used with plural nouns and the pronouns We, You, They.

When using the pronoun you, remember that in English it is plural and therefore always agrees with plural verbs!

Declension table for the verb “to be” in the past simple tense

Use of was, were in speech

These forms of the verb “to be” are used in the same meanings as the present tense forms am, is, are.

1. When specifying a person's name.

• His name was John. - His name was John.
• Their names were Jane and Frida. — Their names were Jane and Frieda.

2. When indicating age.

• Jim was 25 last year. — Jim turned 25 last year.
• My grand parents were 75 last month. — My grandparents turned 75 last month.

3. When indicating the location of a person or group of people.

• They were at the library last week. — They were in the library last week.

4. When describing a person or object.

• She was tall and slender. — She was tall and slender.

5. When listing a person’s qualities.

• He was stupid but kind. “He was stupid, but kind.”

6. In stable expressions.

• They were interested in Literature 3 years ago. — They were interested in literature 3 years ago.
• I was fond of music when I was student. — I was interested in music when I was a student.
• My brother was good at Physics when he studied at school. — My brother was a good physics student (= he was good at physics) when he was at school.

7. When describing the weather.

• It was warm and wet last winter. — Last winter it was warm and damp.
• It was hot and windy this summer. — This summer it was hot and windy.

Construction There was/There were

In English, the verb “to be” is an integral part of the construction there is/there are, which in the past tense looks like this: there was/there were. It is not always easy to translate into Russian, but its meaning is that it denotes the location of something or someone (somewhere, something was or existed).

If the sentence is about a singular noun, then the construction there was is used. To denote plural nouns, the expression there were is used.

• There was a book on the table/There was a book on the table.
• There were many birds in the sky/There were many birds in the sky.

Sometimes this phrase is translated as an impersonal sentence.

• There was a terrible cry. (A terrible scream was heard).

Was/were as an auxiliary verb

There are cases when the verbs was/were in English lose their semantic meaning (to be) and perform the function of auxiliary verbs. For example, in the sentence I was watching this program at 7 o’clock yesterday/I watched this program yesterday at 7 o’clock, the verb was indicates that the narration is in the Past Continuous. This tense is formed using the auxiliary verb “to be” in the past tense and the present participle (Participle I).

The verbs was/were also participate in the formation of passive or passive voice (Passive Voice) in the past tense (Past Simple Passive). To form the passive voice in the past tense, you need the verb to be in the past tense + participle II, the third form of the verb.