Were supposed to have vs Was supposed to have

Both phrases are correct, but they are used in different contexts. 'Were supposed to have' is used when referring to multiple people or things in the past, while 'was supposed to have' is used when referring to a singular person or thing in the past.

Last updated: March 19, 2024 • 489 views

Were supposed to have

This phrase is correct when referring to multiple people or things in the past.

This phrase is used when talking about multiple people or things that were expected to do something in the past.

Examples:

They were supposed to have finished the project by now.
The students were supposed to have submitted their assignments yesterday.

Show examples from the web [+]

Apr 19, 2011 ... versus you "were supposed to have been..." is the key question, actually. The latter, standard, declaration, in passive voice exemplifies the ...
Sep 15, 2015 ... Jon titled the post “The Debate We Were Supposed To Have”, but we could also consider the current situation to be “The Debate We Deserve”.
We never were supposed to have shit. Lyric Meaning. He's implying that in the grand scheme of current America, minorities (especially blacks) were handed the ...
We were supposed to have gone away this week, but Debbie's ill so we couldn't go. How am I supposed to (= how can I) find that much money by the end ...

Alternatives:

were supposed to
were meant to have
were expected to have
were scheduled to have
were obliged to have

Was supposed to have

This phrase is correct when referring to a singular person or thing in the past.

This phrase is used when talking about a singular person or thing that was expected to do something in the past.

Examples:

He was supposed to have arrived an hour ago.
The package was supposed to have been delivered yesterday.

Show examples from the web [+]

Your path through the world this morning was supposed to have been adjusted.
Someone was supposed to have lured him up here for a drink.
I was supposed to have all night to practice.
I was supposed to have an aneurysm, but you killed me instead.
Freddy was supposed to have some papers for me.
This was supposed to have been Errol Flynn's house.
This framework decision was supposed to have been transposed by August 2004.
A meet was supposed to have taken place at this house.
Security was supposed to have covered them with plywood, but they thought nobody would come through that door.
I mean, she was supposed to have moved her stuff out of the flat today.
My wife was supposed to have tidied up before she went to work.
Father's day... No, I was supposed to have custody of Jericho and Cherokee today.
We were leaving the ship that was supposed to have sustained us for our first two years on Mars.
Was supposed to have three events here in the next week.
I was supposed to have eyes on Dalton.
CTU was supposed to have raided the terminal by now.
This was supposed to have chunks of real carrot in it.
This was supposed to have 20 bricks of RDX here.
I was supposed to have game night with Ellie and Awesome.
I was supposed to have game night with Ellie and Awesome.

Alternatives:

was supposed to
was meant to have
was expected to have
was scheduled to have
was obliged to have

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Were supposed to have vs Was supposed to have