Learn English – Is it “were” or “are” in: “Where are/were you when I needed you?”

past-tensepresent-tensetense

Where were you when I needed you?

I used the phrase

Where are you when I needed you?

Is the grammar correct? I don't know if it is.

Best Answer

No. The first statement is right and the second is wrong.

When you say "when I needed you," you are referring to the past. You intend to know where the person was at that time. So the statement

"Where were you when I needed you?"

is grammatically correct.

The question "Where are you?" is at the present tense, so there is a conflict of tenses when you state

"Where are you, when I needed you?"

which doesn't make grammatical sense.