A1 Beginner Past simple of be
There was / There were
Lesson goal. After this lesson you can say what there was in a place in the past, and know which noun decides was or were.
When to use it
- Describing a place in the past: There were thirty students in the class.
- Telling a story: Once upon a time there was a little girl…
- Comparing then and now: There were three shops here ten years ago.
Form
| Present | Past | Used when |
|---|---|---|
| There is a book. | There was a book. | singular or uncountable noun |
| There are two books. | There were two books. | plural noun |
| Negative | There wasn't · There weren't | |
| Question | Was there …? · Were there …? |
Step by step
- Look at the noun immediately after there was / there were.
- Singular or uncountable → was.
- Plural → were.
- Use only the first noun — ignore anything further along.
The usual trap
| Sentence | Choice | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| There ___ a book and two pens. | was | the first noun is a book — singular |
| There ___ two pens and a book. | were | the first noun is two pens — plural |
| There ___ some milk in the fridge. | was | milk is uncountable |
| There ___ a lot of people there. | were | people is plural |
Examples
There was a big tree in the garden.
There were thirty students in the classroom.
There was a lot of noise last night.
There weren't any chairs in the room.
There wasn't any water in the bottle.
Was there a party last night?
Were there many people at the concert?
There were three shops here ten years ago.
Common mistakes
There were a big tree. → There was a big tree.
a big tree is singular → use was.
There was many people. → There were many people.
people is plural → use were.
In my room have a bed. → There is a bed in my room.
A word-for-word translation. English uses There is / There are, not have.
Memory tip
Only look at the noun immediately after was/were. There was a chair and two tables — decided by a chair, not two tables.
Summary
- Singular and uncountable → There was.
- Plural → There were.
- Decided by the first noun that follows.
Practise this lesson
Do exercises with an explanation for every question, take mini tests and track your progress on GrammUp.