What There Was and There Were Mean
There was and there were are the past of there is and there are. They say what was in a place at a time in the past. Is becomes was, and are becomes were. The noun after the verb decides which one you need.
ONE THINGSingular → was
Last night is in the past, so there is becomes there was.
There was a big party at Lan's house last night.
The party is over now.
MORE THAN ONEPlural → were
Many people is plural, so there are becomes there were.
There were many people at the beach on Sunday.
The beach was full.
UNCOUNTABLECounts as singular → was
There was a lot of rain last month.
It rained a lot.
In the past, use there was for one thing or an uncountable noun, and there were for more than one.
TRY IT
- Question 1
"There a strange noise outside last night."
- Question 2
"There two new students in our class yesterday."
The forms
POSITIVE
Therewas / werenoun
There were three eggs in the box.
Uncountable nouns take was: There was some rice in the pot.
NEGATIVE
Therewas / weren'tany + noun
There weren't any taxis at the station.
A singular noun takes a: There wasn't a bus. You can also say: There were no taxis.
QUESTION
Was / Werethere…?
Were there any messages for me?
The short answer keeps there: Yes, there were. / No, there weren't.
IS → WAS · ARE → WERE
- there isthere was
- there arethere were
- there isn'tthere wasn't
- there aren'tthere weren't
only be changes to the past · there and the noun do not change
Ordinary verbs use did in past negatives and questions. This structure does not. The negative is wasn't / weren't, and the question puts was / were before there.
TRY IT
- Question 1
"There any bread in the kitchen, so we bought some."
- Question 2
" there many people at the wedding?"
- Question 3
"Was there a bus after midnight?" — "No, ."
When to use it
Describing a place in the past
There were two big trees in front of my old school.
Say how a place looked before.
Signal words: in my old house · in the photo · in the village
Something that happened
There was an accident on the bridge this morning.
It works for events, not only for things.
Signal words: a party · a match · a test · a problem
Amounts
There wasn't much food left after the party.
Words like much and many go between the verb and the noun.
Signal words: some · any · many · much · a lot of
Asking how many
How many people were there at the meeting?
Was or were still comes before there.
Signal words: How many + plural · How much + uncountable
A lot of works with both verbs. The noun after it decides: There were a lot of cars, but There was a lot of noise.
There Was / There Were vs. Had
Use there was / there were to say that something was in a place. Use had when the subject owns something. The subject can be a person or a thing, like our house.
| THERE WAS / THERE WERE | HAD | |
|---|---|---|
| Example | There was a small garden behind our house. | Our house had a small garden. |
| The subject | there — it has no meaning here | the owner: our house, my uncle |
| Never say | There had a small garden. | Behind our house had a small garden. |
Nobody owns an event, so use there: There was a storm last night.
TRY IT
- Question 1
Which sentence is correct?
- Question 2
"Ten years ago, my uncle a red motorbike."
Common mistakes
Incorrect:There was many students in the library.
Correct:There were many students in the library.
Students is plural, so the verb has to be were.
Incorrect:There is a fire in the next street last week.
Correct:There was a fire in the next street last week.
Last week is in the past, so is has to become was.
Incorrect:There didn't have any buses on Sunday.
Correct:There weren't any buses on Sunday.
The structure is built on be, so the negative is wasn't or weren't, never didn't have.
Incorrect:Did there have any problems with the car?
Correct:Were there any problems with the car?
The question moves was or were in front of there. Did belongs to ordinary verbs.
Incorrect:Was there a pharmacy near the hotel? — Yes, it was.
Correct:Was there a pharmacy near the hotel? — Yes, there was.
A short answer repeats the subject of the question, and the subject here is there.
Incorrect:There were a lot of traffic this morning.
Correct:There was a lot of traffic this morning.
Traffic is uncountable, so it takes was, even after a lot of.
Quick check · 7 questions
Choose the right verb:
There was a cat on our roof yesterday.
- A. was — Correct
- B. were
- C. is
Answer: A. was
A cat is singular, so the verb is was. Yesterday is in the past, so it cannot be is.
Choose the right verb:
There were ten people in the queue at the bank yesterday.
- A. were — Correct
- B. was
Answer: A. were
Ten people is plural, so the verb is were. The word there does not decide the verb.
Choose the right verb:
There was a lot of water on the kitchen floor after the party.
- A. was — Correct
- B. were
Answer: A. was
Water has no plural, so it takes was. A lot of in front of it does not make the sentence plural.
Choose the right negative:
There weren't any tickets left for the concert.
- A. weren't — Correct
- B. wasn't
- C. didn't have
Answer: A. weren't
The structure is built on be, so the negative is wasn't or weren't. Tickets is plural, so it is weren't.
Choose the word that starts the question:
Was there a lot of homework last weekend?
- A. Was — Correct
- B. Were
- C. Did
Answer: A. Was
The question puts was or were before there. It does not use did. Homework is uncountable, so the verb is Was.
Choose the right short answer:
Were there any good films on TV last night? — No, there weren't.
- A. there weren't — Correct
- B. they weren't
- C. there wasn't
Answer: A. there weren't
The question asked Were there, so the answer repeats both there and were: No, there weren't.
Which sentence is correct?
Ten years ago, there was a lake near my house.
- A. Ten years ago, there was a lake near my house. — Correct
- B. Ten years ago, near my house had a lake.
- C. Ten years ago, there had a lake near my house.
Answer: A. Ten years ago, there was a lake near my house.
Near my house cannot be the subject, so had does not work. For something in a place, use there was.
See whether it really stuck.
Start the quiz · 12 questions
