1
as in lived
to have life
stories that begin with the familiar line "once upon a time there was a beautiful maiden"
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
3
as in ranked
to take or have a certain position within a group arranged in vertical classes
our school's football team is first in its division
Synonyms & Similar Words
4
as in happened
to take place
the party is next Saturday
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of was
There was also the possibility of the Panthers activating interior offensive lineman Chandler Zavala ahead of Saturday’s game.
—
Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 10 Jan. 2026
Years later, in June 2023, the FBI and the Department of Justice said there was no credible evidence of foul play in his death, according to a DOJ report.
—Charna Flam, PEOPLE, 10 Jan. 2026
Park hailed the resilience of the community, and how residents organized block by block when there was no roadmap for recovery, and insurance and bureaucratic processes felt impossible to navigate alone.
—City News Service, Daily News, 10 Jan. 2026
The Tuloumne County Sheriff's Office said there was an explosion due to a transformer at Engie, a neighboring facility to Pacific Ultrapower.
—Brandon Downs, CBS News, 10 Jan. 2026
There was no immediate independent corroboration of that account or of any gang affiliation of the vehicle’s occupants.
—Claire Rush, Chicago Tribune, 9 Jan. 2026
Longtime Seattle residents can remember a time in the not-so-distant past when there wasn’t much going on in South Lake Union—that was until the late Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen kickstarted development in the area earlier this century.
—Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 9 Jan. 2026
During the weekend there was an incident which wasn’t really anyone’s fault that resulted in some minor property damage.
—R. Eric Thomas, Washington Post, 9 Jan. 2026
With the Continent in turmoil, though, there was even less appetite for transatlantic travel on the part of the European powers than there had been in 1930.
—Literary Hub, 7 Nov. 2025
Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 10 Jan. 2026
Years later, in June 2023, the FBI and the Department of Justice said there was no credible evidence of foul play in his death, according to a DOJ report.
—Charna Flam, PEOPLE, 10 Jan. 2026
Park hailed the resilience of the community, and how residents organized block by block when there was no roadmap for recovery, and insurance and bureaucratic processes felt impossible to navigate alone.
—City News Service, Daily News, 10 Jan. 2026
The Tuloumne County Sheriff's Office said there was an explosion due to a transformer at Engie, a neighboring facility to Pacific Ultrapower.
—Brandon Downs, CBS News, 10 Jan. 2026
There was no immediate independent corroboration of that account or of any gang affiliation of the vehicle’s occupants.
—Claire Rush, Chicago Tribune, 9 Jan. 2026
Longtime Seattle residents can remember a time in the not-so-distant past when there wasn’t much going on in South Lake Union—that was until the late Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen kickstarted development in the area earlier this century.
—Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 9 Jan. 2026
During the weekend there was an incident which wasn’t really anyone’s fault that resulted in some minor property damage.
—R. Eric Thomas, Washington Post, 9 Jan. 2026
With the Continent in turmoil, though, there was even less appetite for transatlantic travel on the part of the European powers than there had been in 1930.
—Literary Hub, 7 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for was
Verb
-
Courtesy of Gene Yu At age 46, startup founder Gene Yu seems to have lived several lives in one.—
Ernestine Siu,
CNBC,
15 Jan. 2026
-
Investigators said the man, who lived at the home, had already helped his mother escape before re-entering the burning house in an attempt to rescue the family dog.—
Christopher Harris,
CBS News,
14 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Team Russia and Kamila Valieva, who was 15 at the time, stood above them with their gold medals.—
Jackson Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
11 Jan. 2026
-
His tragic death took away valuable time with his grandchildren, but what John stood for will stand for generations to come.—
Andrea Nakano,
CBS News,
11 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The district has four teams ranked among the top 10 in the Dallas area, despite the standouts being spread among 12 high schools.—
Greg Riddle,
Dallas Morning News,
15 Jan. 2026
-
Oklahoma recently ranked sixth in the nation for food insecurity.—
Maddy Keyes,
The Frontier,
15 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
What happened next — her then-husband Joey Buttafuoco's 17-year-old mistress Amy Fisher showing up at her door and shooting her point-blank in the face — created an almost instant media firestorm.—
Janine Rubenstein,
PEOPLE,
16 Jan. 2026
-
The last time this happened was in 2018, with observers in Europe reporting a brief surge of more than 100 meteors per hour.—
Michael d'Estries,
Travel + Leisure,
16 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Pahlavi has been outside Iran for 48 years—longer than the Islamic Republic has existed.—
Bobby Ghosh,
Time,
9 Jan. 2026
-
Whitney Houston broke down the stylistic barrier that existed before that might have prevented Diana Ross from getting in the past.—
Devon Ivie,
Vulture,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Levi Jones, a 33-year-old business owner, pulled up to Sacred Eye Tattoos in Hollywood last week and sat for eight hours getting a photorealistic black-and-white portrait of Mangione on his leg.—
Amanda Rosa,
Orlando Sentinel,
24 Dec. 2024
-
The birthday boy and his big sister Sterling Skye, 3, each sat between one of their parents’ laps.—
Angel Saunders,
People.com,
24 Dec. 2024
Verb
-
He was placed in FBI custody after being treated for a gunshot wound to the arm and abdomen.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
13 Jan. 2026
-
Its last gasp was in 2009, when a Reformist president who had clearly won the election was placed under house arrest instead of sworn into office.—
Karl Vick,
Time,
13 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
That came just a few days after news broke that Palantir had secured a $10 billion contract from the US Army over the next decade.—
Allison Morrow,
CNN Money,
7 Aug. 2025
-
All five of Bednar’s outs came via strikeout on Wednesday.—
Brendan Kuty,
New York Times,
7 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Was.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/was. Accessed 19 Jan. 2026.
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