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; wassail

Example Sentences

Spot gold was 0.7% higher at $4,824.21 a troy ounce.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

The fire burned for more than 12 hours before it was extinguished around midday on Thursday.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

“We went through seven fire extinguishers but we saved the car, which was on a lift,” he said.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 15, 2026

“It was Cal Fire, Corona Fire and my three neighbors who fought the fire with our hoses,” said Rojas, who has lived in the area for over a decade.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 15, 2026

It was a propane tank turkey fryer and worked great for frybread.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith