Showing results for "was"

• an inflection of be.

was

American  

[wuhz, woz, wuhz] / wʌz, wɒz, wəz /

verb

1. first and third person singular past indicative of be.

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was British  

/ wɒz, wəz /

verb

1. the past tense (indicative mood) of be 1

2. not_standard a form of the subjunctive mood used in place of were, esp in conditional sentences

   if the film was to be with you, would you be able to process it?

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Etymology

Origin of was

First recorded before 950; Middle English; Old English wæs, past tense singular of wesan “to be”; cognate with Old Frisian, Old High German, Gothic was, Old Norse var; cf. wassail

Example Sentences

On the front page of the i Paper is the comment from police that there was "no sign of political motive" in the murder.

From BBC • Jul. 13, 2026

However, in the email to Fain and Boyer, the monitor said he was withholding certain information out of deference to a grand jury investigation initiated by the Justice Department.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 13, 2026

Hollywood industry representatives had warned the governor’s office that the new restrictions could affect the state’s production incentive program, which was just bolstered last year to an annual cap of $750 million.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 13, 2026

"It was the only European event and it was hosted in Doncaster, which is sort of just around the corner from me," she said.

From BBC • Jul. 13, 2026

Chaulmoogra oil, which is extracted from seeds of a tropical tree called Hydnocarpus wightiana, was used to treat leprosy for centuries, perhaps as early as the 1300s.

From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly