Basic Details
Word: Where
Part of Speech: Adverb
Meaning: In, at or to which place; it is used to ask about a place or to talk about one.
Sounds like: wear (to have clothes or jewellery on your body); ware (goods made of a certain material, as in glassware)
How to Spell Where
Syllables: where
Tricky part: The h comes straight after the w, and the word ends in e. Students write wher or whare, or mix it up with wear and ware, which sound the same.
Watch out for: wher, whare, wheare
Memory tip: Where has here inside it: w + here. Where is the question, and here is one answer.
Usage Examples
Example 1: Where did you keep the scissors after art class?
Example 2: This is the park where my father learned to ride a cycle.
Example 3: Nobody knew where the little kitten had gone.
Fun Fact
Old English spelt this word hwaer, with h before w. Over the centuries the two letters swapped places, which is why who, what, when, where and why all begin with wh.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
Our class teacher asked us to write down whare we would like to go for the school picnic next month.
a) picnic
b) month
c) teacher
d) whare
Show answer
d) whare. After the wh, the word is spelt -ere, the same letters that end here and there.
Spell-o-Spell
Only one of these words is spelt correctly. Choose its meaning:
1. whoes 2. where 3. wich 4. whoom
a) belonging to which person
b) used to ask about one of a set of choices
c) in or to which place
d) used in place of who as the object of a verb
Show answer
c) in or to which place. Which needs its h after the w, whose ends in -ose, and whom has only one o.
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the letters to find the word that fits the sentence:
Could you please tell me hrewe the nearest post office is?
a) wheel
b) there
c) where
d) whose
Show answer
c) where. There needs a t, wheel an l and whose an o and an s; the question is about a place.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which question asks about a place?
a) Why is the library shut?
b) Who runs the library?
c) Where is the library?
d) When does the library open?
Show answer
c) Where is the library?
2. Choose the word that completes: 'I wonder ____ she bought that lovely bag.'
a) were
b) ware
c) where
d) wear
Show answer
c) where
