Verbo To Be en Pasado: Cómo Usar Was y Were
- Luis Arevalo
- 3 mar 2025
- 10 min de lectura
Actualizado: hace 3 días
El verbo to be en pasado se expresa principalmente con dos formas: was y were. Usamos was con I, he, she e it, mientras que usamos were con you, we y they.
La regla básica es:
I / He / She / It → WAS
You / We / They → WERE
Por ejemplo:
I was tired. Estaba cansado.
She was at home. Ella estaba en casa.
We were busy. Estábamos ocupados.
They were happy. Ellos estaban felices.
Aprender el verbo to be en pasado no consiste solamente en memorizar was y were. También necesitás saber cómo formar oraciones afirmativas, negativas y preguntas, y entender por qué con to be no utilizamos did de la misma manera que con otros verbos.
En esta guía aprenderás cómo usar was y were en inglés, sus reglas, ejemplos, errores comunes y ejercicios para practicar.
¿Qué significa el verbo to be en pasado?
El verbo to be significa principalmente ser o estar.
En presente utilizamos:
am / is / are
En pasado utilizamos:
was / were
Compará:
Presente | Pasado |
I am tired. | I was tired. |
She is at home. | She was at home. |
We are busy. | We were busy. |
They are happy. | They were happy. |
Sin embargo, was y were no tienen una única traducción al español.
Dependiendo del contexto pueden significar:
era / eras / eranestaba / estabas / estabanestuve / estuvo / estuvieronfue / fueron
Por ejemplo:
She was my teacher. Ella era mi profesora.
She was at work yesterday. Ella estuvo en el trabajo ayer.
The meeting was yesterday. La reunión fue ayer.
Por eso es mejor aprender was y were dentro de situaciones completas, en lugar de memorizar una sola traducción.
¿Cuándo usar was y were?
La forma del verbo to be en pasado depende principalmente del sujeto.
Pronombre | To be en pasado | Ejemplo |
I | was | I was tired. |
You | were | You were busy. |
He | was | He was at work. |
She | was | She was happy. |
It | was | It was expensive. |
We | were | We were ready. |
They | were | They were at home. |
La regla más sencilla para recordarlo es:
I / He / She / It → WAS
You / We / They → WERE
Un detalle importante: you siempre utiliza were, aunque estés hablando de una sola persona. Esto corrige una simplificación del artículo anterior que podía generar confusión.
¿Cuándo usar was?
Utilizamos was con:
I
He
She
It
Por ejemplo:
I was at home yesterday.Estuve en casa ayer.
He was tired after work.Él estaba cansado después del trabajo.
She was my teacher.Ella era mi profesora.
It was cold last night.Hizo frío anoche.
También utilizamos was con nombres y sustantivos singulares:
Daniel was at work.
My sister was tired.
The restaurant was full.
Una forma sencilla de saber cuál utilizar es sustituir mentalmente el sujeto por un pronombre:
Daniel → he → was
My sister → she → was
The restaurant → it → was
¿Cuándo usar were?
Utilizamos were con:
You
We
They
Por ejemplo:
You were late yesterday. Llegaste tarde ayer.
We were at the restaurant. Estábamos en el restaurante.
They were very busy. Ellos estaban muy ocupados.
También utilizamos were con sujetos plurales:
My parents were at home.
Daniel and Sofia were at the meeting.
The students were tired.
¿You usa was o were?
You utiliza were, tanto en singular como en plural.
You were tired.
Puede significar:
Vos estabas cansado.
o:
Ustedes estaban cansados.
Por eso:
❌ You was tired.
✅ You were tired.
El verbo to be en pasado en oraciones afirmativas
La estructura es muy sencilla:
Subject + was/were + complement
Por ejemplo:
I was tired yesterday.
My brother was at work.
She was very happy.
We were hungry.
My parents were at home.
The students were ready.
Algo importante es que no necesitamos did cuando utilizamos to be de esta manera.
Decimos:
✅ She was tired.
No:
❌ She did be tired.
Wasn't y weren't: el verbo to be en pasado negativo
Para formar una oración negativa utilizamos:
was not → wasn't
were not → weren't
La estructura es:
Subject + wasn't/weren't + complement
Por ejemplo:
I wasn't tired. No estaba cansado.
She wasn't at work yesterday. Ella no estuvo en el trabajo ayer.
We weren't ready. No estábamos listos.
They weren't at home. Ellos no estaban en casa.
La tabla completa queda así:
Afirmativo | Negativo |
I was | I wasn't |
You were | You weren't |
He was | He wasn't |
She was | She wasn't |
It was | It wasn't |
We were | We weren't |
They were | They weren't |
También podemos utilizar las formas completas:
I was not tired.
They were not ready.
En conversaciones cotidianas, wasn't y weren't son muy comunes.
¿Cómo hacer preguntas con was y were?
Para hacer preguntas con el verbo to be en pasado, colocamos was o were antes del sujeto.
Afirmación:
She was at work.
Pregunta:
Was she at work?
La estructura es:
Was/Were + subject + complement?
Por ejemplo:
Was she at work yesterday?¿Estuvo ella en el trabajo ayer?
Was he tired?¿Estaba cansado?
Were you busy?¿Estabas ocupado?
Were they at the party?¿Estaban ellos en la fiesta?
¿Cómo responder preguntas con was y were?
Podemos utilizar respuestas cortas:
Was she at work?
Yes, she was. No, she wasn't.
Were they tired?
Yes, they were. No, they weren't.
Preguntas con What, Where, When, Why y Who
También podemos utilizar was y were con palabras interrogativas.
Por ejemplo:
Where were you yesterday? ¿Dónde estabas ayer?
Why was she angry? ¿Por qué estaba enojada?
When was the meeting? ¿Cuándo fue la reunión?
Where were they last night? ¿Dónde estaban anoche?
También encontramos preguntas como:
Who was your teacher? ¿Quién era tu profesor?
What was the problem? ¿Cuál era el problema?
Estas preguntas son especialmente útiles porque permiten llevar el verbo to be en pasado a conversaciones reales.
¿Entendés was y were, pero todavía dudás cuando hablás?
Saber que decimos I was y they were es importante. Pero hablar inglés requiere utilizar estas estructuras sin tener que traducir mentalmente cada oración.
En Speak English podés practicar lo que aprendés en clases en vivo y desarrollar mayor confianza para utilizar el inglés en conversaciones reales.
👉 Reservá una clase demo gratis y empezá a practicar tu inglés.
There was y there were: ¿cuál es la diferencia?
There was y there were se utilizan para expresar que algo existía o estaba presente en el pasado.
En español muchas veces los traducimos como había o hubo.
There was
Normalmente utilizamos there was con singular:
There was a problem. Había un problema.
There was a restaurant here. Había un restaurante aquí.
There was a meeting yesterday. Hubo una reunión ayer.
There were
Normalmente utilizamos there were con plural:
There were two problems. Había dos problemas.
There were many people at the party. Había muchas personas en la fiesta.
There were three meetings yesterday. Hubo tres reuniones ayer.
La regla básica es:
Singular → there wasPlural → there were
Para negativas:
There wasn't a problem.
There weren't any customers.
Y para preguntas:
Was there a problem?
Were there many people?
Was y were vs. did: ¿cuál es la diferencia?
Esta es una de las confusiones más frecuentes al aprender el pasado en inglés.
Utilizamos was/were cuando trabajamos con el verbo to be:
I was tired.
She was at home.
They were busy.
Con otros verbos, normalmente utilizamos did para preguntas y didn't para negativas en Simple Past.
Compará:
Verbo to be | Otros verbos |
I was tired. | I worked yesterday. |
I wasn't tired. | I didn't work yesterday. |
Were you tired? | Did you work yesterday? |
She was at home. | She went home. |
Was she at home? | Did she go home? |
Por eso:
❌ Did you be tired?
✅ Were you tired?
Y:
❌ Were you work yesterday?
✅ Did you work yesterday?
Una forma sencilla de recordarlo es:
To be → was / wereOtros verbos → verbo en pasado / did / didn't
Was y were con adjetivos
Utilizamos frecuentemente was y were para describir cómo era o cómo se sentía alguien o algo.
I was tired. Estaba cansado.
She was happy. Ella estaba feliz.
He was angry. Él estaba enojado.
We were hungry. Teníamos hambre.
They were busy. Estaban ocupados.
The movie was interesting. La película era interesante.
Was y were para hablar de lugares
También podemos utilizar el verbo to be en pasado para decir dónde estaba alguien o algo:
I was at home.
She was at work.
He was at the supermarket.
We were at the mall.
They were in Guatemala.
Estas mismas estructuras pueden convertirse fácilmente en preguntas:
Where were you yesterday?
Was she at work?
Were they in Guatemala last week?
Was y were para hablar de profesiones y descripciones
Was y were no significan solamente estaba/estaban.
También pueden expresar era/eran:
My father was a teacher. Mi papá era profesor.
She was my manager. Ella era mi gerente.
He was a student. Él era estudiante.
They were coworkers. Ellos eran compañeros de trabajo.
Esto demuestra por qué no conviene memorizar simplemente:
was = estaba
Su significado depende del contexto.
Expresiones de tiempo con was y were
Como was y were hablan del pasado, frecuentemente aparecen con expresiones que indican cuándo ocurrió algo.
Expresión | Significado |
yesterday | ayer |
yesterday morning | ayer por la mañana |
last night | anoche |
last week | la semana pasada |
last month | el mes pasado |
last year | el año pasado |
two days ago | hace dos días |
three years ago | hace tres años |
in 2025 | en 2025 |
when I was a child | cuando era niño |
Ejemplos:
I was tired yesterday.
We were at the beach last weekend.
She was my teacher three years ago.
They were in Mexico last year.
I was very shy when I was a child.
¿Por qué se dice “If I were you”?
Hasta ahora aprendimos:
I → was
Entonces, ¿por qué decimos:
If I were you...
Esta expresión significa:
Si yo fuera vos...
La diferencia es que aquí no estamos describiendo un hecho real del pasado, sino una situación hipotética.
Por ejemplo:
If I were you, I would talk to my manager. Si yo fuera vos, hablaría con mi gerente.
If I were you, I wouldn't buy it. Si yo fuera vos, no lo compraría.
En este tipo de situaciones hipotéticas, especialmente en la expresión If I were you, podemos utilizar were incluso con I, he, she o it.
Por eso:
I / He / She / It → WAS
es una excelente regla para aprender el verbo to be en pasado, pero no significa que were nunca pueda aparecer con estos sujetos en otras estructuras gramaticales.
Errores comunes con was y were
1. Utilizar were con I en pasado normal
❌ I were tired yesterday.
✅ I was tired yesterday.
2. Utilizar was con they
❌ They was at home.
✅ They were at home.
3. Utilizar was con you
❌ You was late.
✅ You were late.
4. Utilizar did con to be
❌ Did you be tired?
✅ Were you tired?
5. Utilizar didn't con to be
❌ I didn't be at home.
✅ I wasn't at home.
6. Confundir was y were en preguntas
❌ Were she happy?
✅ Was she happy?
7. Utilizar was con un sujeto plural
❌ My friends was at the party.
✅ My friends were at the party.
Para hablar del pasado normal, recordá:
I / He / She / It → WAS
You / We / They → WERE
Ejercicios del verbo to be en pasado
Elegí la respuesta correcta.
1. I _____ tired yesterday.
a) were
b) was
c) did
2. They _____ at the restaurant last night.
a) was
b)
were
c) did
3. _____ you at work yesterday?
a) Was
b) Did
c) Were
4. She _____ happy with the results.
a) was
b) were
c) did
5. We _____ ready for the test.
a) wasn't
b) weren't
c) didn't
6. _____ he your teacher?
a) Were
b) Was
c) Did
7. There _____ a problem with my computer.
a) were
b) was
c) did
8. There _____ many people at the meeting.
a) was
b) were
c) did
9. Where _____ you last night?
a) was
b) did
c) were
10. My parents _____ at home yesterday.
a) was
b) were
c) did
Respuestas
1. b) was — utilizamos was con I.
2. b) were — utilizamos were con they.
3. c) Were — you utiliza were, incluso cuando hablamos de una sola persona.
4. a) was — utilizamos was con she.
5. b) weren't — utilizamos were/weren't con we.
6. b) Was — utilizamos was con he.
7. b) was — a problem es singular.
8. b) were — many people es plural.
9. c) were — decimos Where were you...?
10. b) were — my parents es plural.
Relacionado: Verbos en Pasado en Inglés | Simple Past en Inglés
Verbo to be en pasado: resumen
El verbo to be en pasado tiene dos formas principales: was y were.
La regla básica es:
I / He / She / It → WAS
You / We / They → WERE
Por ejemplo:
I was tired.
She was at work.
We were ready.
They were at home.
Para formar negativas utilizamos:
was not → wasn't
were not → weren't
I wasn't tired.
They weren't at home.
Para hacer preguntas, colocamos was o were antes del sujeto:
Was she at work?
Were they at home?
Y recordá que con el verbo to be no utilizamos did/didn't para formar estas preguntas y negativas:
❌ Did you be tired?
✅ Were you tired?
❌ I didn't be tired.
✅ I wasn't tired.
Dominar estas estructuras te permite hablar sobre dónde estabas, cómo te sentías, cómo era algo o quién era alguien en el pasado.
¿Querés usar la gramática sin tener que pensar cada palabra?
Entender el verbo to be en pasado y cuándo utilizar was y were es importante. Pero el objetivo no debería ser solamente completar correctamente un ejercicio de gramática.
El objetivo es poder decir dónde estabas, cómo te sentías o cómo era algo sin tener que traducir cada oración antes de hablar.
En Speak English podés practicar con clases en vivo ilimitadas de 50 minutos y libertad de horarios, para convertir lo que aprendés en inglés que realmente podás utilizar.
👉 Reservá una clase demo gratis y empezá a practicar tu inglés en conversaciones reales.
Preguntas frecuentes sobre el verbo to be en pasado
¿Cuál es el verbo to be en pasado?
El verbo to be tiene dos formas principales en pasado: was y were. Utilizamos was normalmente con I, he, she e it, y were con you, we y they.
¿Cuándo se usa was y were?
Utilizamos was con I, he, she e it. Utilizamos were con you, we y they. Por ejemplo: I was tired y They were at home.
¿Cuál es la diferencia entre was y were?
Ambos son formas del verbo to be en pasado. La diferencia principal es el sujeto: I/he/she/it normalmente utilizan was, mientras que you/we/they utilizan were.
¿Se dice I was o I were?
Para hablar normalmente del pasado decimos I was: I was tired yesterday. En situaciones hipotéticas podemos utilizar I were, como en If I were you.
¿Se dice you was o you were?
La forma correcta es you were, tanto cuando you representa a una persona como cuando representa a varias.
¿Se dice they was o they were?
La forma correcta es they were.
¿Cómo se usan wasn't y weren't?
Wasn't es la contracción de was not y normalmente se utiliza con I, he, she e it. Weren't significa were not y se utiliza con you, we y they.
¿Cómo hacer preguntas con was y were?
Colocamos was o were antes del sujeto. Por ejemplo: Was she at work? o Were they at home?
¿Cuál es la diferencia entre was/were y did?
Utilizamos was/were con el verbo to be: Were you tired? Para la mayoría de los otros verbos utilizamos did en preguntas del Simple Past: Did you work yesterday?
¿Cuál es la diferencia entre there was y there were?
Normalmente utilizamos there was con singular y there were con plural: There was a problem y There were two problems.
¿Qué significa “Where were you?”
Where were you? significa ¿Dónde estabas? o ¿Dónde estuviste?, dependiendo del contexto.
¿Por qué se dice “If I were you”?
Porque If I were you describe una situación hipotética y significa “Si yo fuera vos”. En este tipo de estructuras podemos utilizar were aunque el sujeto sea I.
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