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• were
  were

  verb

  a second person singular past indicative; first, second, and third person plural past indicative; and past subjunctive of be.
• we're
  we're

  contraction of we are:

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Were appears in the word werewolf. What was the original meaning of this instance of were?

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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

See Examples For:

were we're

“Thought I’d be a lot more rusty,” he said, adding that things were “clicking.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026

Shares of European semiconductor companies were in green territory following strong gains in Asia as investors continued to bet on stocks with exposure to artificial intelligence.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

Homendy said investigators could not yet say anything substantive about the cause of the crash as they were still collecting evidence at the scene.

From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026

Average U.S. gas prices, at $4.14 a gallon, shattered the Labor Day weekend record of $3.82 and are about $1 more than they were last year, the Associated Press reported, citing AAA data.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 7, 2026

She saw a vision bathed in red of her husband flirting with the housekeeper in the alley of the hotel they were going to on vacation.

From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold

"A message to the promoters - we want to host it in London. Talk to us, we're really keen to have it," Khan told BBC Sport on Thursday.

From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026

That’s come down a bit because we’re starting to impose draft restrictions, which reduce the amount of cargo ships can carry.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026

As we’re only talking about $7,000, liquidating the IRA may well be the simplest practical solution.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 7, 2026

“Right now we’re having to consider some outsourced storage,” he said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026

Anna May poked her head back into the workroom and yelled, “Papa, we’re leaving!”

From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu