were

//wɜː(ɹ)// verb

Letters

4 characters

Frequency Rank

#19,290

in Spanish word usage

Misspellings

5

tracked variants

Confusables

20

similar word pairs

were is aSpanishverb. It means: Segunda persona del singular (you) del pasado simple (irregular) de indicativo del verbo (to) be Pronounced /wɜː(ɹ)/. Often confused with wey and west.

Key facts for were
PropertyValue
Headwordwere
LanguageSpanish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/wɜː(ɹ)/
Letters4
Frequency rank#19,290
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of were in Spanish word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The Spanish entry for were is 4 letters long, classified as averb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /wɜː(ɹ)/. Corpus data places it at rank #19,290 in overall Spanish word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it.Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 5 documented wrong-spelling variants for were, with forms such as "ewre", "weer", and "werre". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "wey", "west", "word", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct Spanish form is were, spelled W-E-R-E, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    Segunda persona del singular (you) del pasado simple (irregular) de indicativo del verbo (to) be
  2. 2
    Primera, segunda y tercera personas del plural del tiempo pasado del modo indicativo del verbo be.
  3. 3
    Pasado simple (irregular) del subjuntivo del verbo (to) be.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ewre,weer,werre,wree,wwere

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for were

Misspelling Variants of "were"

ewre4weer4werre5wree4wwere5
Misspelling Variants of "were"

Frequency rank: #19,290 in Spanish

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "were"?
"were" is spelled W-E-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is /wɜː(ɹ)/.
What does "were" mean?
As a verb, "were" means: Segunda persona del singular (you) del pasado simple (irregular) de indicativo del verbo (to) be
What words are commonly confused with "were"?
"were" is commonly confused with "wey", "west", "word". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "were"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "were" is /wɜː(ɹ)/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "were" come from?
"were" is a Spanish word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Nearby Spanish words

Other entries that begin with the letter W in our Spanish index:

Explore PlainSpell

Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.