Revised as of
11 Jan 2023
It’s those contractions again . . . I swear. Contractions are a handy tool for easing dialogue into reality, making people sound true. But it does seem to confuse the heck out of writers. Always remember that — if you see an apostrophe — a letter or two (or three) has been removed from that contracted word.
We are becomes we’re — and never was it where — and eliminates that space between the e and the a. It’s the apostrophe that tells us so. And, yes, lol, it is English, so it is not a hard and fast rule, as apostrophes also indicate possession.
Besides, think how silly or stiff we’d sound if we went about uncontracted: we are going to the cinema, you are correct, or I am howling with laughter as opposed to we’re going to the cinema, you’re right, or I’m howling with laughter. I almost feel as if that second couple going to a movie is about to invite me along . . .
You may be wondering why are and were can’t be the same contraction, we’re. The problem is that were is the plural past-tense form of are and is never used in a contraction. You’re just gonna have to suck it up.
We’re is the only contraction for we are,
and the same applies to
you’re meaning you are,
and they’re meaning they are.
You may be curious about another “were – where” post at Ware vs Wear vs Were vs Where“.
Word Confusions . . .
. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.
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| We’re | Were | Where |
|---|---|---|
Now We’re in the Air poster is courtesy of Paramount and is in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. |
Werewolf by pendleburyannette is under the Pixabay License, via Pixabay. |
Shades is by AKASH UK under the CC BY 2.0 license, via Flickr. — I wonder where this path goes? |
| Part of Grammar: | ||
| Pronoun, first person plural + Verb (2nd person singular present and 1st, 2nd, 3rd person plural present of be | Noun 1 Plural: weres Prefix 2 Verb 3 is the:
|
Adverb, interrogative or relative; Conjunction; Noun; Pronoun Plural for the noun: where |
| Contraction for we are
|
Most commonly, to be
Noun: [Archaic] Man, as in human male [Fandom slang] The collective name for any kind of person that changes into another form under certain conditions, including the werewolf
A style of artwork that involves anthropomorphic creatures in an often digitrade form WW:tA gamers Roleplayers who want to fit into a community to feel “speshul” A military force, a band of troops (Also wered and wering)
Prefix: Verb: Be present [With adverbial] Occur
[Informal] Say Verb, auxiliary: Used with a past participle to form the passive mood [With infinitive] Used to indicate something due to happen
[Archaic] Used with the past participle of intransitive verbs to form perfect tenses Verb, linking:
|
A place
Adverb, interrogative: In or to what place or position
Adverb, relative: The place or situation in which
Conjunction: Whereas Noun: The scene of something Pronoun: The place in which Point at which |
| Examples: | ||
| Mom, we’re heading out now.
We’re going over to catch the football game at Jamie’s. Can’t you see that we’re busy? We’re having a baby! We were out looking at houses, and we’re buying one. Did you hear we’re going skiing up at Chad’s place the end of the month? We’re dressing up for Halloween as Yuck and Yack. We’re so sad to see you go. |
Noun: She takes pride in her spirituality as a were, although to know her from the outside, one would never suspect. There are some awesome were artists out there, but don’t they draw anything else? Hey, look, another self-proclaimed were has found their way to the boards. Didn’t you know that Jake was a were? Prefix: For killing the pregnant woman, you’ll owe a weregild for two. She was shocked to learn he was a werebear. Verb: There were no easy answers. There were no curtains around the showers. If the exhibition were in November, I could attend. We were here. They were headed over to the theatre. Most of us were hungover. If I were you . . . Weren’t you at the game last night? We were coming tonight, but the car broke down. Where were you? When I got there, they were like “What are you doing here?” Verb, auxiliary: If it were said . . . If his book were to be published this fall, we would get a jump on the competition. If construction were to begin next summer instead of next fall, it could be finished three months earlier. If I were to meet him at 6:30, I could see you at 9. You were to follow these orders. If I were to lose, the results would be catastrophic. If I were to tell you, you’d think I was crazy. Verb, linking: Jayne’s parents weren’t doing well. The tickets were $25. We were everything to each other. The multi-story buildings were all over the campus. |
Adverb, interrogative: Where do you live? Where are you from? Where is she going? Where do you come from? Where does the argument lead? Where did you read that? Just where is all this leading us? Adverb, relative: Sit where I can see you. This is where I live. Where people were concerned, his threshold of boredom was low. He was free to go where he liked. Conjunction: Where some caregivers burn out, others become too involved. Do you see where the men in your life are emotionally unavailable to you? I see where the hotel has changed hands again. Where some caregivers burn out, others become too involved. Noun: It’s where he was living when I knew him. Boston Store is where I got my new bathing suit. Pronoun: This is where the boat docks. That was where the phone rang. |
| Derivatives: | ||
| be about be off |
||
| History of the Word: | ||
| Its first known use was c. 1529. |
|
Old English hwær of Germanic origin. |
C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!
Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.
Resources for We’re vs Were vs Where
Apple Dictionary.com
Pinterest Photo Credits:
Loup Garou is a lithograph by George Sand, 1858, and is courtesy of Paris, bibliothèque des Arts décoratifs, and Dinosoria. It is in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons and has been brightened and the contrast increased in Photoshop.
