Proper Usage of Where, Were and Wear

Where vs were vs wear

There are so many words in the English language that sound the same and they are known as homophones. Despite these similarities, most of the words have different meanings and usage in a sentence. In this paper, we are going to discuss the correct way of using ‘where,’ ‘were’ and ‘wear’ – homophones that are commonly misused and misspelled during sentence construction.

When to use ‘where’

                Of the three words, ‘where’ is versatile because it can function as a conjunction, pronoun and adverb. It is important to note however that when you are using ‘where,’ the content of the sentence has something to do with a place, situation or a location. Here are a few examples: “Where can I find your school? (Adverb).” “He lives in a place where there is no winter (conjunction).” “She moved to Japan where opportunity is better (pronoun).”

                In order to distinguish ‘where’ from ‘were’ and ‘wear,’ here are more specific ways of using it in a sentence. When referring to a reference point, the preposition ‘from’ is usually added before ‘where:’ “From where did this gift come from?” “From where I am standing, I can see everyone clearly.”

                When we are using ‘where’ to specify a destination, we do not need to add the preposition ‘to’ at the end of a sentence. For example, we say “Where are they going?” instead of “Where are they going to?” The latter is redundant and thus unnecessary to reiterate in a sentence.

                Sometimes, ‘where’ is also used in replacement of ‘in which.’ Both of these are interchangeable and acceptable in a sentence. For example: “This is the table where the documents are placed,” “This is the table in which the documents are placed.” In both examples, the use of ‘where’ and ‘in which’ are acceptable, but ‘in which’ is more often used in informal sentences than ‘where.’

When to use ‘were’

                ‘Were’ is the past tense of ‘are.’ It is a non-action form of verb that indicates a state of being in the past. In these examples, we can see how ‘were’ is used in a sentence: “My cousins were on vacation for a month,” “What were you eating when I arrived at your place?” Both examples show that ‘were’ acts as a verb, so we can easily separate it from ‘where,’ which cannot function as a verb.

When to use ‘wear’

                ‘Wear’ functions as a verb meaning ‘to use, have or carry something on a person as protection, cover or adornment.’ “My sister wears glasses because she is far-sighted.” “Always wear your seatbelt for protection.” Wear can also mean ‘to erode’ or ‘to exhaust.’ For example: “Today’s hot climate is wearing me down.” “Soon, rust and rainwater will wear the stairs down.”