What you'll learn
By the end of this lesson, you'll be able to describe people, places, and situations in the past using was and were, and form "there was / there were" sentences.
When do I use it?
Use was and were to talk about the past with the verb "to be": "I was tired," "They were in Madrid." You also use them to say something existed in the past: "There was a party," "There were two tickets." Think of them as the past form of am, is, and are.
How do I form it?
| I | was |
|---|---|
| You | were |
| He/She/It | was |
| We | were |
| They | were |
'Was' goes with I, he, she, and it. 'Were' goes with you, we, and they. It works the same for ser and estar — there is no separate past in Spanish either, but the form is the same for both.
For negatives and questions, add "not" or swap the order:
- Negative: I was not hungry. → I wasn't hungry.
- Question: Were they at home? → Yes, they were. / No, they weren't.
Common mistakes for Spanish speakers
In Spanish, "ser" and "estar" stay separate but both become was/were in English: "Era médico" and "Estaba cansado" both use "was" — do not invent a different verb for one. Also, you must match the subject: "you was" is wrong because "you" always takes "were", even when you talk to one person: "Tú estabas" = "You were".
Match the subject: I/he/she/it → was; you/we/they → were. For "there was / there were", singular noun → was; plural noun → were.
Practice
Multiple Choice
A1Which sentence is correct?
Fill in the Blank
A1They in London last summer.
Hint: 'They' takes 'were'.
Find the Error
A1Sentence Transformation
A1Task: Rewrite in the past
Hint: Change 'am' to 'was'.
Practice Speaking
Apply what you've learned in a real conversation with AI feedback.
Level: A1