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• were
  were

  verb

  a second person singular past indicative; first, second, and third person plural past indicative; and past subjunctive of be.
• we're
  we're

  contraction of we are:

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Were appears in the word werewolf. What was the original meaning of this instance of were?

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were

¹ American  

[wur, wer, wair] / wɜr, wər, wɛər /

verb

1. a second person singular past indicative; first, second, and third person plural past indicative; and past subjunctive of be.

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we're ² American  

[weer] / wɪər /

1. contraction of we are:

   We're happy to see you.

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were ¹ British  

/ wɜː, wə /

verb

1. the plural form of the past tense (indicative mood) of be and the singular form used with you. It is also used as a subjunctive, esp in conditional sentences

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we're ² British  

/ wɪə /

contraction

1. we are

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Grammar

See subjunctive.

Usage

See contraction.

Were, as a remnant of the past subjunctive in English, is used in formal contexts in clauses expressing hypotheses ( if he were to die, she would inherit everything ), suppositions contrary to fact ( if I were you, I would be careful ), and desire ( I wish he were there now ). In informal speech, however, was is often used instead

Etymology

Origin of were

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English wǣre past subjunctive, wǣre 2nd-person singular past and wǣron 2nd-person plural past of wesan “to be”; cognate with Dutch, German waren, Danish var. See was

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

were we're

But I’ve seen healthcare powers of attorney activated, decisions made, and the parents survive — and be surprised by the decisions that were made.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026

Renault RNO 2.80%increase; up pointing triangle reaffirmed its full-year outlook and said cost-cutting efforts were bearing fruit after reporting revenue growth in the first half of the year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026

Watts Towers attract about 40,000 visitors a year, according to the California Department of Parks and Recreation, and were designated a U.S.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026

The television hosts were right about the tone‑deafness, but wrong about the scale.

From Salon ● Jul. 29, 2026

Once the dogs were gone, the two emerged out of the small opening.

From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold

“I think Angel fans would hope the team gets better and maybe those prices would go up,” Freedman said, “but what we’re confident in is that we’re going to have a value experience.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026

“It’s great that it’s here. It’s kind of bad that we’re the guinea pigs,” says one local leader.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026

"They simply got into fights over the land. They just showed who was in charge. And we're the ones in charge of this land," she said.

From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026

"If we don't understand what climate change, ocean warming or acidification does to coral ecosystems, there is a chance we're going to lose them," Ravasi said.

From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026

Here we're somewhere in the middle of the head with the cortex above, the corpus callosum in the middle, and the brain stem descending to the spinal column.

From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman