were
[ wur; unstressed wer; British also wair ]
/ wɜr; unstressed wər; British also wɛər /
Save This Word!
verb
a second person singular past indicative; first, second, and third person plural past indicative; and past subjunctive of be.
VIDEO FOR WERE
WATCH NOW: Here's A Little Reminder About "Were" Vs. "Was"
This man had a serious debate over using "were" vs. "was" ... at the pub. Makes sense. Did he figure it out?
QUIZZES
QUIZ YOURSELF ON "WAS" VS. "WERE"!
Were you ready for a quiz on this topic? Well, here it is! See how well you can differentiate between the uses of "was" vs. "were" in this quiz.
Question 1 of 7
“Was” is used for the indicative past tense of “to be,” and “were” is only used for the subjunctive past tense.
Meet Grammar Coach
Improve Your Writing
Origin of were
First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English wǣre past subjunctive, wǣre past indicative second person singular and wǣron past indicative plural of wesan “to be”; cognate with Dutch, German waren, Danish var. See was
grammar notes for were
See subjunctive.
Words nearby were
Wentworth scale, wen-yen, Wenzel, Wenzhou, wept, were, weren't, werewolf, werewolves, Werfel, Wergeland
Definition for were (2 of 2)
we're
[ weer ]
/ wɪər /
contraction of we are:We're happy to see you.
usage note for we're
See contraction.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for were
British Dictionary definitions for were (1 of 2)
were
/ (wɜː, unstressed wə) /
verb
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
Word Origin for were
Old English wērun, wæron past tense plural of wesan to be; related to Old Norse vera, Old Frisian weria, Old High German werōn to last
usage for were
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
British Dictionary definitions for were (2 of 2)
we're
/ (wɪə) /
contraction of
we are
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012