What's the difference between
and
Enter two words to compare and contrast their definitions, origins, and synonyms to better understand how those words are related.

Was vs Got - What's the difference?

was | got |

As verbs the difference between was and got

is that was is form of First-person singular simple past tense indicative|be|lang=en while got is simple past of get.

was

English

Verb

(head)
  • .
  • .
  • (proscribed, dialect) .
  • * 1913 , Arthur Conan Doyle, The Poison Belt
    • "Was you outside the Bank of England, sir?"
  • (colloquial)
  • * 2001 , Darrel Rachel, The Magnolias Still Bloom (page 104)
    • “What happened here, Hadley?” the chief asked. “We was robbed, damn it, we was robbed.”

    Derived terms

    * *

    See also

    * am * are * is * art * be * being * been * beest * wast * were * wert * woz * wuz

    Statistics

    *

    Anagrams

    * * 100 English basic words English auxiliary verb forms English irregular first-person singular forms English irregular simple past forms English irregular third-person singular forms English verb simple past forms English verb forms using redundant wikisyntax ----

    got

    English

    Verb

    (head)
  • (get)
    • We got the last bus home.
  • (British, NZ)
    • By that time we'd got very cold.
    I've got two children.
    How many children have you got ?
    • I can't go out tonight, I've got to study for my exams.
  • (Southern US, with to) ; have (to).
    • I got to go study.
  • * 1971 , Carol King and Gerry Goffin, “Smackwater Jack”, Tapestry , Ode Records
    • We got to ride to clean up the streets / For our wives and our daughters!
  • (Southern US, UK, slang) have
    • They got a new car.
    He got a lot of nerve.

    Usage notes

    * (past participle of get) The second sentence literally means "At some time in the past I got (obtained) two children", but in "have got" constructions like this, where "got" is used in the sense of "obtained", the sense of obtaining is lost, becoming merely one of possessing, and the sentence is in effect just a more colloquial way of saying "I have two children". Similarly, the third sentence is just a more colloquial way of saying "How many children do you have?" * (past participle of get) The American and archaic British usage of the verb conjugates as get-got-gotten or as get-got-got depending on the meaning (see for details), whereas the modern British usage of the verb has mostly lost this distinction and conjugates as get-got-got in most cases. * (expressing obligation) "Got" is a filler word here with no obvious grammatical or semantic function. "I have to study for my exams" has the same meaning. It is often stressed in speech: "You've just got to see this."

    Synonyms

    * gotta (informal )

    Statistics

    *

    Anagrams

    * English irregular past participles English irregular simple past forms ----