were

¹ American  

[wur, wer, wair] / wɜr, wər, wɛər /

verb

1. a second person singular past indicative; first, second, and third person plural past indicative; and past subjunctive of be.

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we're ² American  

[weer] / wɪər /

1. contraction of we are:

   We're happy to see you.

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were ¹ British  

/ wɜː, wə /

verb

1. the plural form of the past tense (indicative mood) of be and the singular form used with you. It is also used as a subjunctive, esp in conditional sentences

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we're ² British  

/ wɪə /

contraction

1. we are

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Grammar

See subjunctive.

Usage

See contraction.

Were, as a remnant of the past subjunctive in English, is used in formal contexts in clauses expressing hypotheses ( if he were to die, she would inherit everything ), suppositions contrary to fact ( if I were you, I would be careful ), and desire ( I wish he were there now ). In informal speech, however, was is often used instead

Etymology

Origin of were

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English wǣre past subjunctive, wǣre 2nd-person singular past and wǣron 2nd-person plural past of wesan “to be”; cognate with Dutch, German waren, Danish var. See was

Example Sentences

In the petition, which was obtained by People and initially filed on Nov. 28, Cortazzo claimed that her ex has failed to fulfill “monetary obligations” that were included in the divorce settlement.

From MarketWatch

I assume your doctor told you that you were at an elevated risk and/or gave you a diagnosis.

From MarketWatch

Every summer they gobbled up the best recruits, and every winter they were among the favorites to add to their trophy cabinets.

From The Wall Street Journal

Sushi restaurants came to the U.S. in the late 1960s, and were initially popular with American businessmen and their Japanese colleagues, said Trevor Corson, author of the 2008 book “The Story of Sushi.”

From The Wall Street Journal

If social media were a literal ecosystem, it would be about as healthy as Cleveland’s Cuyahoga River in the 1960s—when it was so polluted it repeatedly caught fire.

From The Wall Street Journal