Grammar is the method using which the meaning of words is encoded in a given language. English grammar is full of tricky and complex concepts that often confuse the user, not only because of similar spellings but also due to similar phonetic sounds and pronunciations that baffle new speakers.
Understanding the difference between the two is essential to avoid miscommunication and encoding messages properly.
Where and were belong to two different classes of words. The two words have entirely different meanings and usage.
Key Takeaways
- โWereโ is the past tense of the verb โto beโ in its plural form, used to describe a state or action that happened in the past for more than one subject (e.g., They were at the party last night).
- โWhereโ is an adverb or conjunction that indicates a location, place, or situation and is used to ask or provide information about the position or surroundings of something (e.g., Where is the nearest gas station?).
- Using โwereโ and โwhereโ correctly depends on understanding their distinct functions in a sentence, with โwereโ being a verb and โwhereโ serving as a locational term.
Were vs Where
The difference between was and where is that โwereโ is a plural past verb form, whereas โwhereโ is an adverb that prevails with time.

Comparison Table
Parameter of Comparison | Where | Were |
---|---|---|
Pronunciation | Phonetically, where rhymes with air | โWereโ is a word that rhymes with her |
Meaning | Points towards directions or location | It is used to denote an action and is plural. |
Usage | It can function as an adverb or conjunction | The past tense of โto be |
Position | Where belongs to the 5ws league, hence is placed at the beginning of a sentence. | Where is positioned after a noun. |
Example | Where do you live? | They were sitting together. |
When to Use Were?
The word โwereโ is used to denote the presence of objects or persons. The term is the plural form of โareโ.
The immediate translation of โwereโ is the โstate of being or of beingโ. As per the English syntax, were is placed in the middle of the sentence.
โWereโ is the past form of the word โareโ. When โwasโ word is pluralized it becomes โwereโ.
Examples of the usage of the word were
- Last year, we were forced to celebrate Christmas in the village.
- Yesterday, we all were waiting for you at the cafe.
In the above sentences, the word โwereโ denoted the presence of individuals who are more than once. The sentences are past tense, meaning the event has already occurred.
If it was about a current event, โareโ would have been used instead. Similarly, the word was would be used if the vent involved just one individual instead of multiple entities.
The trickiest part about using the word for non-native speakers can be pronouncing the word โwereโ. Were, for instance, has no โhโ, yet its pronunciation rhymes with โherโ.
Besides the pronunciation. The word โwereโ can also be used in a question, but unlike โwhereโ, it will never pertain to the location of the said entity.
For example- Were you present are her wedding? All other rules, including the tenses and plurality, remain intact in the above sentence.
When to Use Where?
The word โwhereโ is an adverb. It is placed at the begging of a sentence.
โWhereโ asks for the location or place of someone or something. Hence is an adverb which pertains to time. โWhereโ is the part of the 5 W league of question words and four other words, When andย Why.
The word is commonly confused with were and weโre, which once again are phonetically similar but very different in usage. The word other than being an adverb can also be used as a conjunction; that is, it can be used between two sentences.
The wordย โ whereas the conjunction is used to replace the phrase โin the placeโ. For example,
You will find the girl where everybody goes to eat ice cream.
In this case, where is not used at the beginning of a sentence, nor does it suggest that the given sentence is a questionโinstead, the word where indicates the location of the said entity.

Main Differences Between Were and Where
- The main difference between where โand โwereโ is that where is that, โwereโ is a verb, while โwhereโ is an adverb.
- Phonetically, Where rhymes with air, while โwereโ rhymes with her. There is a soft sound of h at the beginning of the word โwereโ.
- The word โwereโ is used as the past plural for โwasโ, while where indicates the location of a said entity.
- Where is a part of the 5-Ws of question words, while were cannot be used as a question word.
- Where can also be used as a conjunction, while were is reserved for indicating past plural entities.

- https://www.dictionary.com/browse/were
- https://dictionary.cambridge.org/grammar/british-grammar/where

Emma Smith holds an MA degree in English from Irvine Valley College. She has been a Journalist since 2002, writing articles on the English language, Sports, and Law. Read more about me on her bio page.