something was wrong vs something were wrong

The correct phrase is 'something was wrong.' In English, 'was' is used with singular subjects, while 'were' is used with plural subjects. Since 'something' is singular, 'was' is the appropriate verb to use in this context.

Last updated: March 15, 2024 • 10889 views

something was wrong

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English.

Use 'something was wrong' when referring to a singular subject that is incorrect or not right.

Examples:

Something was wrong with the computer.
I knew something was wrong when she didn't show up.
He felt that something was wrong with the situation.
The teacher noticed something was wrong with the student's behavior.
She could sense that something was wrong in the room.

Show examples from the web [+]

... to Poetry · Submissions & Letters to the Editor · Poetry Magazine Prizes · Advertise with Us · Home > Poetry Magazine > I knew something was wrong ...
20 hours ago ... When her older daughter Shannon told her he still hadn't returned, she said she knew something was wrong and contacted the gardaí to see if ...
4 days ago ... “I felt something was wrong.” An emotional Wiley testified on the first day of the jury trial of Kyle Dube, 21, of Orono at the Penobscot Judicial ...
4 days ago ... “They started banging on the door and that's when I knew something was wrong,” Reese said. At that point, she saw two people circling the ...

Alternatives:

something went wrong
something is wrong
something seems wrong
something feels wrong
something appears wrong

something were wrong

This phrase is incorrect in standard English usage.

Show examples from the web [+]

If something were wrong, Cody would contact us.
It's as though something were wrong with his heart or lungs.
Barton wouldn't do this unless something were very wrong.
Now if something bigger were wrong with my wife,
Would you have an abortion if something were seriously wrong?
If something were to go wrong and those missiles were to be launched, the president needs to be able to swear under oath that we were working on our own.
It takes something to admit you were wrong.
If something were in fact wrong with the baby, maybe there's something in her medical records, something genetic that could be causing a problem.
If something were to go wrong... ...I've a feeling my superiors would very much prefer it if it was me that got killed and not the head of the Miletti family.
If you didn't hear voices at least once, you were doing something wrong.
You must have known you were doing something wrong when you deliberately concealed Rhoda's actions from me.
Some of the problems of Slovakia originate from that period but it is unfair to keep referring to that episode as if there were still something wrong with the country.
But did you have a feeling that you were doing something wrong?
There's something wrong with her.
There's something wrong with Charlie.
Newsflash, something wrong with the world.
There's something wrong with my brain.
So there was something wrong before the collapse.
There's something wrong, Peter.
You see something wrong going down...

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something was wrong vs something were wrong