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I suspect I might be wrong saying "We did were there", "I did was there".

I presume there must be infinitive form of a verb after the verb "do" of a certain tense, i.e. "We did be there", "I did be there".

Is it a common rule for this case or are there any exceptions?

Also, could you point me out to the grammar where I can find some info about this?

Alex Herman
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    To use did you need to say something like “We did go there.” if you want to use were then you need to emphasize it in a different way like, “We really were there.” – Jim Mar 28 '16 at 00:30

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For most verbs, do (and other parts does, did, done) are required in questions and negatives, but with an affirmative statement are optional, and normally used only for emphasis or contrast. They are always followed by the simple form ("infinitive") of the verb.

However, in most varieties of English, this construction is not available with "be": it is simply not grammatical to say "We did be there". As Jim says, if you need to emphasise, you have to do it in a different way.

There are some dialects of English which do allow "do" with "be"

Colin Fine
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The verb "to be" is unique in that it doesn't need "do" to do anything in simple tenses! Not to negate, not to form a question...it's a free agent!

To emphasize just use intonation/pitch: But Honey, we WERE there!

Suzanne Sullivan
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