Past simple of be: was, were

When you use it

Was and were are the past forms of be. You use them to say where someone was, what something was like, how old someone was, or what the weather was like at a finished time: yesterday, last week, in 2020. Every other verb has one past form for all subjects; be keeps two, and it also keeps the ability to make its own negatives and questions without did. That is why it needs a lesson of its own before the general past simple.

Was and were also appear inside other past tenses that you will meet later, in the past continuous (I was working) and in the passive (the house was built). A secure command of these two forms pays off well beyond this lesson.

How it is formed

Choose was or were by the subject. I goes with was, which surprises learners, because in the present I has its own form (am) and here it shares was with he, she and it.

Questions are made by moving was or were in front of the subject. No did is used. Short answers repeat the verb without the rest of the sentence.

With question words the order is the same: Where were you?, Why was she late?, How was the film?

Negative questions use the short forms: Wasn't it cold?, Weren't you at home? They usually express surprise or ask for agreement rather than for new information.

The pattern there is / there are also moves into the past: there was with a singular or uncountable noun, there were with a plural: There was a problem. There were two problems.

You always takes were, even when you speak to one person. Ukrainian and Russian change the form of the verb for ти and ви, and also for gender in the singular (був / була / було, был / была / было). English has no gender here, and no separate form for one you.

Examples

• I was at home all evening.
• Tom was tired after work.
• The shops were closed yesterday.
• Were you at the party on Saturday?
• Anna wasn't at school last week. She was ill.
• We weren't hungry, so we didn't eat.
• It was cold and windy this morning.
• There were a lot of people at the station.

Common mistakes

• ✗ I didn't was at home.
  ✓ I wasn't at home.
  Be makes its own negative by adding not; it never uses did. The same is true of questions: Were you at home?, not Did you were.
• ✗ You was late.
  ✓ You were late.
  Ти був and ты был are singular forms, so was seems right for one person. English you always takes the plural form were, whether you speak to one person or a group.
• ✗ Was cold yesterday.
  ✓ It was cold yesterday.
  Було холодно and было холодно have no subject. English sentences need one, so the weather, the time and the temperature get the empty subject it.
• ✗ I born in 2005.
  ✓ I was born in 2005.
  Я народився and я родился are ordinary active verbs, so nothing feels missing. English born is a participle and needs was or were in front of it.
• ✗ Did you were at work yesterday?
  ✓ Were you at work yesterday?
  Questions with be are made by inversion alone. Did belongs to the other verbs and never appears together with was or were.

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