Past Simple: Was/Were (Negative & Questions) Practice Tests

Past Simple: Was/Were (Negative & Questions)

In a previous lesson, you learned to use was and were in positive sentences, for example: "I was happy." and "They were at school."

In this lesson, you will learn how to use was/were in negative sentences (saying something did not happen) and questions (asking about the past). These are very important skills for talking about the past in English.

Let's start with a simple situation:

Yesterday was Saturday. Tom was at home, but he was not at the park. Was he happy? Yes, he was!

We use was and were to talk about the past — about people, places, things, and feelings in a time that is already finished.

• Was → used with I, he, she, it (one person or thing)
• Were → used with you, we, they (more than one person, or "you")

Part 1: Negative Sentences with Was/Were

How to Make a Negative Sentence

To make a negative sentence (to say something is not true), we add not after was or were.

The pattern is:

Subject + was/were + not + ...

Look at these examples:

• I was not tired. (I did not feel tired.)
• She was not at school. (She did not go to school.)
• We were not hungry. (We did not feel hungry.)
• They were not at home. (They were not in the house.)

Short Forms (Contractions)

A contraction is when we join two words together and use an apostrophe (') to show the missing letter. In spoken English and informal writing, we often use contractions.

was not → wasn't
were not → weren't

Examples with contractions:

• I wasn't tired.
• She wasn't at school.
• We weren't hungry.
• They weren't at home.

Both forms are correct. Use the full form (was not / were not) in formal writing. Use the short form (wasn't / weren't) in everyday conversation.

Negative Sentence Table

Part 2: Questions with Was/Were

How to Make a Yes/No Question

A yes/no question is a question with a simple answer: yes or no.

To make a question with was or were, we move was/were to the beginning of the sentence, before the subject.

The pattern is:

Was/Were + subject + ...?

Compare a positive sentence and a question:

• Positive: She was happy. → Question: Was she happy?
• Positive: They were at home. → Question: Were they at home?

More examples:

• Was he tired? → Yes, he was. / No, he wasn't.
• Was it cold? → Yes, it was. / No, it wasn't.
• Were you at school? → Yes, I was. / No, I wasn't.
• Were they happy? → Yes, they were. / No, they weren't.

Yes/No Question Table

Part 3: Wh- Questions with Was/Were

Asking for More Information

Sometimes we want more information, not just a yes or no answer. We use question words (sometimes called Wh- words) at the beginning of the question.

Common question words:

• Where = asking about a place
• Who = asking about a person
• What = asking about a thing or idea
• When = asking about a time
• How = asking about a feeling or condition

The pattern is:

Question word + was/were + subject + ...?

Examples:

• Where was she? → She was at the supermarket.
• Who was your teacher? → My teacher was Mr Brown.
• What was the problem? → The problem was the traffic.
• When were you at school? → I was at school in the morning.
• How was the film? → It was great!

Wh- Question Table

Important Differences and Special Cases

Was or Were?

Remember: the choice between was and were does not change in negative sentences or questions. The same rules apply:

• Use was with → I, he, she, it
• Use were with → you, we, they

This is true for positive sentences, negative sentences, and questions.

Short Answers: Don't Repeat Everything!

In English, we often give short answers to yes/no questions. We do not repeat the whole sentence.

Question: Was she at home?
✅ Yes, she was. (short and correct)
❌ Yes, she was at home. (not wrong, but too long for a short answer)

Question: Were they happy?
✅ No, they weren't.
❌ No, they were not happy. (again, not wrong, but we prefer the short answer)

Special Note: "Were" with "I" in Wishes

In very specific situations, advanced speakers sometimes say "If I were you..." — but this is a special form for expressing wishes. At A1 level, do not worry about this. Always use was with I for now.

Common Mistakes

Here are some mistakes that beginners often make. Read each one carefully!

❌ She were not at school.
✅ She wasn't at school. (Use was with she, not were.)

❌ They was not happy.
✅ They weren't happy. (Use were with they, not was.)

❌ Was they at the park?
✅ Were they at the park? (Use were with they.)

❌ Were she a doctor?
✅ Was she a doctor? (Use was with she.)

❌ He wasn't was happy.
✅ He wasn't happy. (Do not use was twice. Use wasn't on its own.)

❌ Was you tired?
✅ Were you tired? (Use were with you.)

❌ Where was they?
✅ Where were they? (Use were with they.)

❌ No, I were not.
✅ No, I wasn't. (Use was with I.)

Past Simple: Was/Were (Negative & Questions): Quick Summary

Let's look at the key rules from this lesson:

• Use was with: I, he, she, it
• Use were with: you, we, they
• To make a negative, add not after was/were: was not / were not
• The contractions are: wasn't and weren't
• To make a yes/no question, put was/were at the beginning: Was she happy? / Were they at home?
• To make a Wh- question, put the question word first: Where was he? / How were they?
• Give short answers: Yes, she was. / No, they weren't.

Now practise Past Simple: Was/Were (Negative & Questions) in the exercises below.