For learning English - The past form of to be

To be is the most common verb in the English language. It can be used as an auxiliary or a main verb. In the simple past tense, to be is conjugated as follows:

Singular = 1		Plural = 1+
I	was	You	were
You	were	We	were
He/she/it	was	They	were

Uses

Was/Were

Question ?		Positive Statement +		Negative Statement -
	Singular	Written Form or spoken for emphasis		Written Form or spoken for emphasis	Contracted Form (spoken)
	Was I?	I was		I was not	I wasn't
	Were you?	You were		You were not	You weren't
	Was he? Was she? Was it?	He was She was It was		He was not She was not It was not	He wasn't She wasn't It wasn't
	Plural
	Were we?	We were		We were not	We weren't
	Were you?	You were		You were not	You weren't
	Were they?	They were		They were not	They weren't

Examples

	Were	Was
Question - ?	"Were you busy on Monday?"	"Was it nice at the weekend?"
Positive Answer + Yes	"Yes we were."	"Yes it was. It was lovely."
Negative Answer - No	"No we weren't."	"No it wasn't. It wasn't very nice at all."

Want to know more about the use of verbs? Read our recommended grammar books section.

Forms of the verb "To be"