Past Simple of Be (was / were)
You can talk about the past with was / were, including where you were.
Start the 8-question quizAdapts to your answers · every miss links back to the rule
Rule in 60 secondsThe one pattern to memorise.
- Kural 1: be'nin geçmişi: I/he/she/it → was, you/we/they → were.
- Kural 2: Olumsuz: wasn't / weren't. Soru: Was / Were başa gelir.
- Kural 3: was/were kendi başına soru ve olumsuz yapar, did almaz.
- Kural 4: Zaman işaretleri: yesterday, last night, in 2010, two days ago.
- Kural 5: there was / there were = vardı (there is/are'nin geçmişi).
- Kural 6: Tekil isimle was, çoğulla were: There was a cat. / There were cats.
- Kural 7: Kısa cevap:
Yes, I was./No, they weren't.
- Kural 8: Born kalıbı was/were ile:
I was born in 2000.
- Kural 9: Hava durumu geçmişte:
It was cold yesterday.
- Kural 10: Yaş geçmişte:
I was ten in 2010.(am değil was).
- Kural 11: Duygu geçmişte:
They were sad after the news.
FormsHow it looks in sentences.
| Form | Pattern | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| + Positive | I/he/she/it + was | I was ill. / She was at home. |
| + Positive | you/we/they + were | They were happy. / We were late. |
| + Positive | there was/were | There was a cat. / There were many people. |
| − Negative | S + wasn't/weren't | He wasn't ready. / You weren't there. |
| − Negative | S + wasn't/weren't | It wasn't cold. / They weren't tired. |
| ? Question | Was/Were + S ...? | Was she tired? / Were they at school? |
| ? Wh-question | Wh + was/were + S? | Where were you yesterday? |
| ? There | Was/Were there ...? | Was there a bank here? |
| Short answer + | Yes, S + was/were. | Yes, I was. / Yes, they were. |
| Short answer − | No, S + wasn't/weren't. | No, she wasn't. / No, we weren't. |
- Not 1: wasn't = was not, weren't = were not.
- Not 2: Dün anlatırken is/are kullanma, was/were kullan.
3 classic trapsWhere Turkish speakers slip.
Bu bölümdeki 3 tuzağa tek bakışta dikkat et.
- was/were seçimi: was sadece tekil özneler + I ile — ✗ They was happy. → ✓ They were happy; ✗ We was late. → ✓ We were late — Ezber: I was, you were, he was, we were, they were.
- did ile karıştırma: was/were kendi başına soru/olumsuz yapar, did almaz — ✗ Did you were tired? → ✓ Were you tired; ✗ I didn't was there. → ✓ I wasn't there — did sadece normal fiillerle (go, eat, see) kullanılır.
- is/was zaman uyumu: dün anlatırken is kullanma — ✗ Yesterday is rainy. → ✓ Yesterday was rainy; ✗ In 2010 I am a child. → ✓ In 2010 I was a child — Zaman ifadesi geçmişse fiil de geçmiş olmalı.
10 example sentencesRead aloud, twice.
Her cümleyi sesli oku, önce İngilizceyi sonra Türkçesini söyle.
- I was at home yesterday. — Dün evdeydim.
- She was very tired last night. — Dün gece çok yorgundu.
- They were in Antalya last summer. — Geçen yaz Antalya'daydılar.
- It was sunny yesterday. — Dün hava güneşliydi.
- We weren't ready for the exam. — Sınava hazır değildik.
- He wasn't at work this morning. — Bu sabah işte değildi.
- Was the film good? — Film güzel miydi?
- Were you late for school? — Okula geç mi kaldın?
- There was a cat in the garden. — Bahçede bir kedi vardı.
- There were many people at the party. — Partide çok insan vardı.
Quick checkCover the answers, say yours first.
- Fill in: We ___ very happy yesterday. (was / were)
Answer
We <b>were</b> very happy yesterday.
- Make negative: She was angry.
Answer
She <b>wasn't</b> angry. (did kullanma!)
- Make a question: They were at home.
Answer
<b>Were</b> they at home?