Difference between revisions of "Language/English/Grammar/Was-and-Were"

Revision as of 16:22, 14 January 2017

Was and were are both past tenses of the verb TO BE. The verb be is an irregular verb and it is used a lot.

Was is used in the first person singular and the third person singular (he, she, it).
Were is used in the second person singular and plural (you, your, yours) and first and third person plural (we, they).

Example: "They were gone". Not: "they ~~was~~ gone".

Which of the following two choices is correct?

-or-

You hear people say both each and every day, so it’s hard to know which is correct.

The answer, however, has to do with the subjunctive mood which is a verb form that is used for hypothetical statements.

It is made up of the phrases I were, he were, she were, it were, etc. You often use this form to express wishes.

For example,

In thoses sentences, he is talking about things he wishes would happen.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-When wondering which verb to use, check to see if your subject is plural or not.
+Was and were are both past tenses of the verb TO BE. The verb be is an irregular verb and it is used a lot.
-* Example: "They were gone". Not: "they <del>was</del> gone".
+==Singular / Plural==
-Because '''they''' implies more than one party. It is plural.
+*Was is used in the first person singular and the third person singular (he, she, it).
+*Were is used in the second person singular and plural (you, your, yours) and first and third person plural (we, they).
-For singular subjects, such as '''he''' or '''she''', use WAS.
+Example: "They were gone". Not: "they <del>was</del> gone".
-If your subject is plural or singular your verb must match.
+==If I was / If I were==
-This is called subject-verb agreement.
+Which of the following two choices is correct?
+*If I was a better teacher, I could have more students.
+-or-
+*If I were a better teacher, I could have more students.
+You hear people say both each and every day, so it’s hard to know which is correct.
+The answer, however, has to do with the subjunctive mood which is a verb form that is used for hypothetical statements.
+It is made up of the phrases I were, he were, she were, it were, etc. You often use this form to express wishes.
+For example,
+*He wishes I weren’t so selfish.
+*He wishes it were wet outside.
+In thoses sentences, he is talking about things he wishes would happen.