The spelling of the phrase "were told" can be explained using IPA phonetic transcriptions. "Were" is pronounced as /wɜːr/, with the first sound being a voiced labio-velar approximant and the second sound being a mid-central vowel. "Told" is pronounced as /toʊld/, with the first sound being an unvoiced alveolar plosive, the second sound being a diphthong starting with a mid-back rounded vowel and ending with a high-back unrounded vowel, and the last sound being a voiced alveolar lateral approximant. Therefore, "were told" is pronounced as /wɜːr toʊld/.
"were told" is a past tense phrase derived from the verb "to tell." It refers to the act of conveying information, facts, instructions, or opinions to someone in the past. The verb "to tell" denotes verbal communication between two or more individuals, where one person imparts or relays information to another.
In the case of "were told," the past tense indicates that the act of being informed or receiving specific instructions occurred at some point in the past. It suggests that the person or people being referred to were the recipients or audience of this information from someone else.
This phrase can imply that the information was relayed by a reliable or credible source, potentially implying a level of truth or authority. It could also imply that the information was shared willingly or intentionally, indicating that the recipient was purposefully informed about a particular subject matter.
The phrase "were told" can often be found in narratives, anecdotes, reports, or retellings of events to indicate that information had been conveyed to individuals in the past. The usage of this phrase assists in setting a temporal context and providing background on how the individuals came to possess this knowledge.