was

American  

[wuhz, woz, wuhz] / wʌz, wɒz, wəz /

verb

1. first and third person singular past indicative of be.

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was British  

/ wɒz, wəz /

verb

1. the past tense (indicative mood) of be 1

2. not_standard a form of the subjunctive mood used in place of were, esp in conditional sentences

   if the film was to be with you, would you be able to process it?

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Etymology

Origin of was

First recorded before 950; Middle English; Old English wæs, past tense singular of wesan “to be”; cognate with Old Frisian, Old High German, Gothic was, Old Norse var; cf. wassail

Example Sentences

Nereyda said this year hasn’t been as bad as a year ago when Hernandez was first thrust into a national anti-trans backlash.

From Los Angeles Times • May 14, 2026

Last week, Mamman was found guilty of 12 counts, including using private firms to funnel money linked to government-funded power plants.

From BBC • May 14, 2026

It was a tactic Nereyda Hernandez previously faced when her daughter, Jurupa Valley High track and field athlete AB Hernandez, first hit the national spotlight last year.

From Los Angeles Times • May 14, 2026

Having recovered from a knee injury, he made his third debut for Stockport on 6 April... lasting all of 11 minutes as he got two yellow cards and was sent off.

From BBC • May 14, 2026

And he was going to have to make up a lot of ground if he wanted a chance with her.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith