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Grammar Guide

Rules, patterns and examples grouped by level — from A1 basics to advanced structures.

A1 Beginner English Grammar

Past Simple of “To Be”

What is it?

The past simple forms of to be are was and were.

Use was with:

  • I
  • he
  • she
  • it

Use were with:

  • you
  • we
  • they

Examples:

  • I was tired.
  • She was at home.
  • We were busy.
  • They were happy.

The negative forms are was not and were not.

The common short forms are:

  • was not → wasn’t
  • were not → weren’t

When to use

Use the past simple of to be to talk about:

  • past states: I was tired.
  • past feelings: She was nervous.
  • past locations: They were at school.
  • past ages: He was ten years old.
  • past descriptions: The room was small.
  • past situations: We were very busy.
  • past dates and times: It was Monday.

Structure

Positive sentences

Subject Form Example
I was I was at work.
He / She / It was She was happy.
You / We / They were They were at home.

Structure:

subject + was/were + complement

  • He was tired.
  • We were late.

Negative sentences

Subject Full form Short form
I / He / She / It was not wasn’t
You / We / They were not weren’t

Structure:

subject + was not/were not + complement

  • I wasn’t hungry.
  • They weren’t ready.

Questions

Structure:

Was/Were + subject + complement?

  • Was she at home?
  • Were they tired?
  • Were you busy?

Short answers

  • Was he late? — Yes, he was.
  • Was she tired? — No, she wasn’t.
  • Were they at school? — Yes, they were.
  • Were you busy? — No, I wasn’t.

Examples

  1. I was very tired yesterday.
  2. She was at the office this morning.
  3. He wasn’t ready for the meeting.
  4. It was cold last night.
  5. We were happy with the result.
  6. You were very quiet yesterday.
  7. They weren’t at home.
  8. Was your brother at school?
  9. Were the shops open?
  10. Where were you last weekend?

Exceptions

Use were instead of was in some formal or unreal expressions with I, he, she, or it.

  • If I were you, I would wait.
  • I wish she were here.

In informal English, was is sometimes used in these expressions, but were is the standard form.

Common mistakes

  1. Incorrect: I were tired yesterday. Correct: I was tired yesterday. Explanation: Use was with I.

  2. Incorrect: They was at home. Correct: They were at home. Explanation: Use were with they.

  3. Incorrect: She didn’t be happy. Correct: She wasn’t happy. Explanation: Do not use didn’t with the past simple of to be.

  4. Incorrect: Did he was at work? Correct: Was he at work? Explanation: Do not use did in questions with was or were.

  5. Incorrect: We wasn’t ready. Correct: We weren’t ready. Explanation: Use weren’t with we.

  6. Incorrect: Were she at school? Correct: Was she at school? Explanation: Use was with she.

  7. Incorrect: I was not at home? Correct: Was I not at home? Explanation: Put was before the subject to form a question.

  8. Incorrect: They were not tired? Correct: Weren’t they tired? Explanation: In questions, place were or weren’t before the subject.