USE
We use the verb "be" in Past Simple when we want to
say who somebody was — He was Rob.
say what something was — That was my mobile phone.
say where somebody was from — They were from Ireland.
say how we felt — You were hungry.
say where somebody or something was — I was at school. My book was on the table.
describe somebody or something in past — They were clever. Your jacket was nice.
talk about people's jobs in past — My mother was a teacher.
talk about somebody's age in past — He was fifteen years old in 2015.
talk about somebody's health in past — Ann was ill.
talk about the weather in past — It was cold yesterday.
say that there was something somewhere in past — There were a lot of small shops in our town.
FORM
AFFIRMATIVE
| Full form |
| I was |
| we were |
| you were |
| they were |
| he was |
| she was |
| it was |
NEGATIVE
| Full form | Short form |
| I was not | I wasn't |
| we were not | we weren't |
| you were not | you weren't |
| they were not | they weren't |
| he was not | he wasn't |
| she was not | she wasn't |
| it was not | it wasn't |
INTERROGATIVE
GENERAL QUESTIONS and SHORT ANSWERS
| Question | Yes | No |
Was I …? | Yes, I was. | No, I wasn't. |
| Were we …? | Yes, we were. | No, we weren't. |
| Were you …? | Yes, you were. | No, you weren't. |
| Were they …? | Yes, they were. | No, they weren't. |
| Was he …? | Yes, he was. | No, he wasn't. |
| Was she …? | Yes, she was. | No, she wasn't. |
| Was it …? | Yes, it was. | No, it wasn't. |
NOTE!
In short answers we use pronouns (I, we, you, they, he, she, it)
— Is Maria a teacher?
— No, she isn't.
(Not: No, Mary isn't.)
SPECIAL QUESTIONS
| (QW) | was / were | S | ... | ? |
| Where | was | I | yesterday | ? |
| Where | were | we | last Monday | ? |
| Where | were | you | two days ago | ? |
| Why | were | they | hungry | ? |
| When | was | he | sad | ? |
| Where | was | she | from | ? |
| What | was | it | ? |
***
S — Subject of the sentence
QW — Question word
