were

See also: were-, we're, werɛ, and wɛrɛ

English

Etymology 1

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *h₂wes-der.

Proto-Germanic *wēzīn

Proto-West Germanic *wāʀīn

Old English wǣre

Old English wǣron

Old English wǣren

Middle English were

English were

Inherited from Middle English were, weren, from Old English wǣre, wǣron, wǣren, from Proto-West Germanic *wāʀun, *wāʀīn, from Proto-Germanic *wēzun, *wēzīn, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂wes-. More at was.

Alternative forms

• ware (old eye dialect)
• weare (obsolete)

Pronunciation

• (UK)
  • (Received Pronunciation)
    • (weak form) IPA^(key): /wə(ɹ)/ enPR: wər
    • (strong form) IPA^(key): /wɜː/ enPR: wûr

      • Audio (London):

        (file)

  • (Humberside, fair–fur merger, strong form) IPA^(key): /wɛː/ enPR: wâr
  • (Lancashire, fair–fur merger, strong form) IPA^(key): /wɜː(ɹ)/ enPR: wûr
  • (Liverpool, fair–fur merger, strong form) IPA^(key): /weː/ enPR: wâr
  • (Northumbria, strong form) IPA^(key): /wɔː/
    • (Teesside, fair–fur merger, strong form) IPA^(key): /wɛː/ enPR: wâr
  • (Scotland, strong form) IPA^(key): /wɛr/ enPR: wûr
• (US)
  • (weak form) IPA^(key): /wɚ/ enPR: wər

    • Audio (US):

      (file)

  • (strong form) IPA^(key): /wɝ/ enPR: wûr

    • Audio (US):

      (file)

• (New Zealand)
  • (strong form) IPA^(key): /wøː/ enPR: wûr
• (Ireland)
  • (strong form) IPA^(key): /wɑːɹ/ enPR: wär
• Homophone: we're
• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ), -ɛr
• Homophones: whirr (wine–whine merger, fern–fir–fur merger), ware (fair–fur merger), where (fair–fur merger, wine–whine merger)

Verb

were

1. second-person singular simple past indicative of be

   John, you were the only person to see him.

2. plural simple past indicative of be

   We were about to leave.

   Mary and John, you were right.

   They were a fine group.

   They were to be the best of friends from that day on.

4. simple subjunctive of be

   I wish that it were Sunday.

   I wish that I were with you.

   If you were to move your chair a little, we'd all fit.

   I'd say you were about 50 years old right now.

   • with “if” omitted, put first in an “if” clause:

     Were it simply that she wore a hat, I would not be upset at all. (= If it were simply...)

     Were father a king, we would have war. (= If father were a king,...)

   • 1927, Ernest Bramah [pseudonym; Ernest Brammah Smith], Max Carrados Mysteries:

     A long shot, it may be, at immortality, but longer ones have hit; or Guido Fawkes, William Tell, and Samuel Pepys were forgotten now.

   • 2011 November 3, David Ornstein, “Macc Tel-Aviv 1 - 2 Stoke”, in BBC Sport‎^[1], archived from the original on 9 March 2026:

     Maccabi would have been out of contention were it not for Stoke's profligacy, but their fortune eventually ran out as the visitors opened the scoring.

5. (MLE, Northern England, Ireland) first/third-person singular simple past indicative of be.

Synonyms

• (second-person singular past indicative, archaic) wast (used with “thou”)
• (second-person singular imperfect subjunctive, archaic) wert (used with “thou”)

See also

• am
• are
• art
• be
• been
• beest
• being
• is
• was
• wast
• wert

Etymology 2

Inherited from Middle English were, wer, see wer.

Noun

were (plural weres)

1. Alternative form of wer (“man; wergeld”).
   • 1799-1805, Sharon Turner, History of the Anglo-Saxons

     Every man was valued at a certain sum, which was called his were.

   • 1867, John Lingard, T. Young, Introduction to English History [...] arranged [...] by T. Young, page 19:

     If by that he failed to pay or give security for the were, or fine, at which murder was legally rated; he might be put to death by the relatives of the murdered man.

   • 1908, Frederic Jesup Stimson, The Law of the Federal and State Constitutions of the United States, page 13:

     Written statutes busied themselves only with the amount of the were, or fine, or (for the first century after the Conquest) with the method of procedure.

   • 2004, James Fitzjames Stephen, A General View of the Criminal Law of England, →ISBN, pages 12–13:

     The consequence of conviction was, the payment to the person injured, of a were, or penalty, proportioned to the offencel but though this was the ordinary course, the recovery of the were was not the only object of the proceedings. "The were," says Reeve, "in cases of homicide, and the fines that were paid in cases of theft of various kinds, were only to redeem the offender from the proper punishment of the law, which was death, and that was reddemable, not only by paying money, but by undergoing some personal pains; hence it is that we hear a great variety of corporal punishments..."...

Etymology 3

Back-formation from werewolf and other terms in were-, from the same source as English wer, were (“man”) (above).

Noun

were (plural weres)

1. (fandom slang) The collective name for any kind of person that changes into another form under certain conditions, including the werewolf.

Anagrams

• Ewer, ewer, ewre, rewe, weer

Dutch

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eːrə

Verb

were

1. (dated or formal) singular present subjunctive of weren

Anagrams

• weer

Fijian

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

were

1. (traditional) yam garden (piece of land for cultivating yams)

   Synonym: veiwere

   Sa bula vinaka na were ni tavioka.

   The yam garden is growing well.

2. (by extension) garden (piece of land for growing plants)

   Au la'ki cakacaka ena were.

   I'm going to work in the garden.

Verb

were (transitive werea or wereca)

1. to weed, to garden (to remove weeds from)

   Synonym: qavi (Vanua Levu)

   Au were tiko na teitei.

   I'm weeding the garden.

   E wereca na nona teitei.

   S/he weeds his/her garden.

2. to clean, to clear (of unwanted vegetation)

   Era werekoro edaidai.

   They're cleaning the village today.

Derived terms

• veiwere (“yam garden”)
• were ubiubi (“to pretend to weed; to do shoddy work”, literally “to weed by just knocking grass down”) (idiom)
• werekoro (“to clean up the village (communally)”)

References

• Gatty, Ronald (2009), “were”, in Fijian–English Dictionary‎^[2], Suva, Fiji: Ronald Gatty, →ISBN, page 196

Irarutu

were

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.

Noun

were

1. water

Further reading

• Clemens Voorhoeve (1975), Languages of Irian Jaya Checklist, Canberra: Pacific Linguistics, →DOI

Maku'a

Noun

were

1. water

References

• Aone van Engelenhoven, The position of Makuva among the Austronesian languages of Southwest Maluku and East Timor, in Austronesian historical linguistics and culture history: a festschrift, Pacific linguistics 601 (2009)

Middle English

Etymology 1

Inherited from Old English wǣre, wǣren, wǣron, from Proto-West Germanic *wāʀ-, finite past plural and subjunctive stem of *wesan, from Proto-West Germanic *wēʀ-, finite past plural and subjunctive stem of *wesaną.

Some forms are influenced by Old Norse vár-, vǫ́r-, finite past plural and subjunctive stem of vesa, vera, though East Saxon forms such as ware reflect East Saxon Old English *wār-; West Midland /ˈwœːr(ə)/ presumably originates from rounding of /ɛ/ between /w/ and /r/ in reduced forms with a short vowel.

Alternative forms

• weer, weere, wer; wære (Early Middle English)
• weore, wuere (West Midland); wor, wore (especially North Midland, Norfolk)
• wair, war, ware, warre (Northern)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈwɛːr(ə)/, /ˈweːr(ə)/
• IPA^(key): (East Saxon) /ˈwaːr(ə)/, (West Midland) /ˈwœːr(ə)/
• IPA^(key): (especially North Midland or Norfolk) /ˈwɔːr(ə)/, (Northern) /waːr/ (from vár-, vǫ́r-)
• IPA^(key): /ˈwɛr(ə)/, /ˈwar(ə)/, /ˈwɔr(ə)/, (West Midland) /ˈwœr(ə)/ (reduced)

Verb

were

1. second-person singular indicative past of been
2. singular subjunctive past of been
   • c. 1370, [William Langland], “[Passus 1]”, in Petrus plowmon (V, A-text), Worcestershire, published c. 1390, folio 395, recto; republished as Bodleian Library MS. Eng. poet. a. 1, Oxford: Digital Bodleian, 10 January 2019:

     ¶Þēne hedde I. wonder in my wit. what wōmon hit weoꝛe. / Þat suche wyse woꝛdes. of holy writ me ſchewede / And halſede hire in þe heiȝe nome. er heo þeonne ȝeode.

     Then I felt curiosity in my mind regarding who this woman could be / that showed me such wise words of Holy Scripture, and asked her by the Holy Name where she came from […]

   • c. 1471, Joh[annes] fforteſcue, “Heꝛe aft͛ ys schewyd what haꝛme would come to Englond yf the cȏmons theꝛof weꝛe pooꝛe”, in [Governance of England] (Bodleian MS. Digby 145)‎^[3], Adrıan[us] ffoꝛteſcu, published 1532, folio [149, recto]; republished at Oxford: Digital Bodleian, 16 August 2022:

     And alſo ıt wer also gretely ayenſte hıs conſyence that awght to defend them ⁊ theır goodꝰ. ıf he toke from them theır goodꝰ w^tout lawfull cauſe / ffrom the infamye wherof. god defend owre kyng. and gyue hym gcͣe to augment hıs realme ın ryċeſſe welth ⁊ ꝕſperyte to hıs ꝑpetual laude ⁊ honour /

     And it would also be greatly against his conscience, which should defend them and their possessions, if he took their possessions from them without legal justification. / God defend our king from the infamy of this, and provide him with grace to improve his realm with riches, wealth, and prosperity to his perpetual credit and honour.

3. plural indicative/subjunctive past of been

   Synonym: weren

   • c. 1370, [William Langland], “[Passus 7]”, in Petrus plowmon (V, A-text), Worcestershire, published c. 1390, folio 399, recto; republished as Bodleian Library MS. Eng. poet. a. 1, Oxford: Digital Bodleian, 10 January 2019:

     An Hep of Hermytes. henten heom ſpades. / And doluen drit. ⁊. donge. to dutte Honger oute. / ¶ Blynde and Bedraden. weoꝛe Botned a þouſent

     A heaping of hermits got themselves spades / and scooped dirt and dung to block up Hunger; / the blind and bedridden were cured by the thousands.

4. (rare) first-person/third-person singular indicative past of been

   Synonym: was (usual)

Descendants

• English: were (dialectal war, ware)
• Middle Scots: wer, war, ware
  • Scots: war, waar, waur, wur, wir
• Yola: war, ware

References

• Björkman, Erik (1900), “Chapter I. Phonetic criteria of Scandinavian loan-words in English”, in Scandinavian loan-words in Middle English (Studien zur Englischen Philologie; 7)‎^[4], Part I, Halle A.S.: Max Niemeyer, page 85.
• Dance, Richard; Pons-Sanz, Sara; Schorn, Brittany (2019), “ware (2) v”, in The Gersum Project ⁠‎^[5], University of Cambridge, University of Cardiff, and the University of Sheffield.
• Jordan, Richard (1974),  Eugene Crook, transl., Handbook of the Middle English Grammar: Phonology (Janua Linguarum. Series Practica; 218)‎^[6], The Hague: Mouton & Co. N.V., →DOI.
• McIntosh, Angus; Samuels, M[ichael] L.; Benskin, Michael (2013) [1986], Michael Benskin, Margaret Laing, editors, eLALME: A Linguistic Atlas of Late Medieval English‎^[7], Edinburgh: Angus McIntosh Centre for Historical Linguistics; revised November 2024.

Etymology 2

From weren (“to wear”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈwɛːr(ə)/

Noun

were (uncountable)

1. wearing

Descendants

• English: wear
• Yola: were, wer

References

• “wēre, n.(4).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Etymology 3

Noun

were

1. alternative form of werre (“war”)

Etymology 4

Adjective

were

1. alternative form of werre (“worse”)

Adverb

were

1. alternative form of werre (“worse”)

Noun

were

1. alternative form of werre (“worse”)

Etymology 5

Verb

were

1. alternative form of weren (“to wear”)

Etymology 6

Verb

were

1. (County Durham) alternative form of worien

Mwani

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *ìbéèdè.

Noun

were class 5 (plural mawere)

1. breast

Northern Kurdish

Verb

were

1. second-person singular imperative of hatin

Old English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈwe.re/
• Rhymes: -e.re

Noun

were

1. dative singular of wer

Onin

Etymology

Derived from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.

Noun

were

1. water (clear liquid H₂O)

Tocharian B

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

were ?

1. smell, scent, odor

Toro

Noun

were

1. day

References

• Roger Blench, The Toro language of Central Nigeria and its affinities (2012)

Uruangnirin

Etymology

Derived from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.

Noun

were

1. water (clear liquid H₂O)

Yola

Alternative forms

• wer

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English were.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /wɛːr/, /wɛr/

Noun

were

1. wearing

Related terms

• waare (“to wear”)

References

• Jacob Poole (d. 1827) (before 1828), William Barnes, editor, A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, published 1867, page 77

Yoruba

Alternative forms

• ièrè, iwèrè

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /wè.ɾè/

Noun

wèrè

1. insanity, madness, imbecile
2. (sometimes derogatory, offensive) mad person

   Synonyms: ayírí, asínwín, aṣiwèrè

Derived terms

• #Sọ̀rọ̀SókèWèrè (“2020 anti police brutality hashtag”)
• aṣápẹ́-fún-wèrè-jó àti wèrè, ọgbọọgba ni wọ́n (“one who claps for a lunatic to dance is no better than the lunatic”)
• ebi ni yóò kọ́ wèrè lọ́gbọ́n (“it is hunger that will force sense into the fool”)
• sọ̀rọ̀ sókè wèrè (“phrase derived from the hashtag”)
• ṣiwèrè (“to go mad”)
• wèrè la fi ń wo wèrè (“fight fire with fire”)
• wèrè ló pọ̀ jù nínú yín (“your madness is too much”)
• ya wèrè (“to go mad”)

Descendants

• → Nigerian Pidgin: werey