The past of to be, part 1 of 2

Was and Were: The Verb To Be in the Past

In the past, am and is become was, and are becomes were: I was tired, they were at home.

A1 · 12 minBefore:Verb to be: questions

The idea

What the past of to be is

It is the same verb, but for something that already happened: how you felt, where you were, what something was like. It has two forms: was and were.

How you felt. We were nervous.
Where you were. I was at my aunt's house.
What something was like. The hotel was nice.

When to use it

To say how you felt, where you were, what something was like, and how old you were. These expressions go with it:

How it was

It was great
It was a long day
It was my fault

Where you were

I was at work
We were on vacation
They were out

As a kid

I was in fifth grade
I was a shy kid
We were neighbors
I was ten

Examples

How you felt
I was tired last night.
Where you were
We were at the beach.
The weather
It was cold yesterday.
What it was not like
The test wasn't hard.
Asking
Were you at the party?
When you were born
I was born in 2001.

How to build it

3 steps

Start with the subjectA pronoun or a noun:My parents
Choose was or wereWas with I, he, she, it, or one; were with you, we, they, or more than one:My parents were
Finish with the restWhere, how, or when:My parents were in Lima last week.

Affirmative

SubjectThe movie
was / werewas
complementfunny.

Negative

SubjectThe kids
wasn't / weren'tweren't
complementtired.

Question

Was / WereWas
subjectthe store
complement ?open?

The rule

From present to past

Subject	Present	Past
I	am	was
he, she, it, or one	is	was
you, we, they, or more than one	are	were

Negative, question, and short answer

Negative	Question	Short answer
I wasn't scared.	Was she late?	Yes, she was. / No, she wasn't.
They weren't home.	Were you busy?	Yes, I was. / No, I wasn't.

How to pronounce it

was
/wʌz/
The a sounds like the u in cup: /wʌz/.
were
/wɝ/
One syllable: /wɝ/, like the start of word.
wasn't
/ˈwʌzənt/
Two syllables: /ˈwʌzənt/.
weren't
/wɝnt/
One syllable: /wɝnt/.

Check

My brothers (blank) at school yesterday. Which word goes in the blank?

Don't confuse it with did

I wasn't hungry.

With be: wasn't

I didn't eat.

With another verb: didn't

Was and were go with be (tired, at home, late). Other verbs use did and didn't for negatives and questions.

Past simple

In real life

If you are not sure, think of the present: if it takes am or is, the past is was; if it takes are, the past is were.

Frequently asked questions

Is I were correct?

In the normal past, no: I was. You only hear it in phrases like If I were you, which is another structure.

Do was and were say what someone is or how they feel?

Both: She was a teacher and She was tired use the same verb.

How do you say when you were born?

With was: I was born in Cali. You cannot say I born.

In short

Am and is become was: I was tired.
Are becomes were: they were late.
Negative: wasn't, weren't. Question: Was it...?
To say when you were born: I was born in...

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