verb tenses exercise. We/re "We're" is a short for "we are." Once, there, Zoe found her dogs! This word is also often used to start a question, such as: In the sentence, the speaker is trying to find out at what location the listener or reader lives. Several attacks were staged to defeat the barbarous pirates. ), Second-person singular and plural of "be" (You "were" busy last week. A relative adverb – It is used as a point of reference; for example: I saw him at Macy’s, where I work as a manager. We were watching TV last night. Was and were are past tenses of the verb to be. Leave a Comment / Uncategorized / By Admin. Our chart reveals something delightful. Dr. Richard Nordquist is professor emeritus of rhetoric and English at Georgia Southern University and the author of several university-level grammar and composition textbooks. "We're" (rhymes with "fear") is a contraction of "we are." The forms that was and were will take in your sentence are summarized in the chart below, Singular = I was, You were, He was, She was, … • Were is a verb whereas where is used to enquire about a place or location. A lot of you seemed to spot these "W" words getting muddled up on the Internet and wanted me to lay it out for people. Have fun! The word where (rhymes with hair) talks about a place, location, stage, or situation. You can keep learning by using the lesson titled Using Where vs Were. “Were,” on the other hand, is the plural and past form of the verb “be.” It is also used as a verb in unreal or imaginary conditional statements. Into: How to Choose the Right Word, Using âDondeâ and Related Terms To Mean âWhereâ, Desert vs. Dessert: How to Choose the Right Word, There, Their, and They're: How to Choose the Right Word, Whoever vs. Whomever: How to Choose the Right Word. The past tense of 'to be' Describes 2 or more people, places, or things; example: We were smart. We're looks different from were: it has an apostrophe between the first e and the r. English can be difficult, especially when it comes to words that can be easily confused. This is where I grew up. There are several reasons why you might be struggling to decide whether you should be using \'was\' or \'were\' in a sentence. Use "where" as an adverb referring to a location, as in: Here, the writer is stating that she does not know "where" (at what place or location) the listener or reader lives. Very often, People get confused between Where and were. If it doesn't, you need "were." To determine the difference between "were" and "we're," try substituting "we are" for the word. The words “where” and “were” are two of the most commonly confused words in the English language. The adverb and conjunction "where" (rhymes with "hair") refers to a place. But, what happens when you have three … Were vs. We're - Quiz 1. If it works, you know you can use "we're." The basic difference is rather obvious when used in context. In terms of pronunciation, “where” rhymes with “hair,” while “were” rhymes with “stir.”. Where vs Were : Use in Sentence & Difference Guide. A couple of examples would be who vs whom and further vs farther. Hi Tizania, these are different words, although they are pronounced similar. This sentence means "we are" going to a particular location, Savannah. Where vs Were • Where is used to ask questions about places whereas were is a past tense of be. I'm just going to ask them where they're going and hook up with them later. They are often mistaken for each other, especially while writing it down. Were. Were vs Was. We're going home now. Where "Where" refers to a place. Always use were when imaginging a scenario; Where vs. were, wear and we’re are a prime examples. Towards: How to Choose the Right Word, Choose, Chose, and Chosen: How to Choose the Right Word, Lead vs. So, use the terms at the end of each sentence, as in: Both of these uses don't make sense. Were. If I were Beyonce, I would hide my child from the public until she turns 18 years old. Where, which rhymes with 'bear,' and were, which rhymes with 'fur,' are often confused, even by native English speakers. They were happy, but now they are ecstatic. Were. For example: In this sentence, which is perfectly acceptable English, you are saying: "We are" going back to work tomorrow. In most cases, these homophones are only two or three words. The verb to be is an irregular verb, which is a verb that does not follow any pattern or rules in its conjugation. Were is a verb and the past tense of be. (This is the past form of "are. When you have finished the quiz, click the "Score" button to see your results. 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