there were
fixed phr..fixed phr.. You use 'there were' to say that more than one thing or person existed somewhere in the past.
fixed phr.. The past tense plural form of the existential 'there' construction, used to introduce the existence of plural nouns. 'There' acts as a dummy subject, and the real subject follows the verb.
There were three cats on the wall.
When I arrived at the party, there were already about fifty people in the room.
In the silence that followed his announcement, there were only the sounds of the wind and a distant, mournful bell.
This phrase is always followed by a plural noun (e.g., 'two books', 'many people').
Contrast 'there were' (for plural nouns) with 'there was' (for singular nouns), a common point of confusion for learners regarding subject-verb agreement.
There was three cars outside.There were three cars outside.Use 'were' because the subject ('three cars') is plural; the verb must agree with the noun that follows it.