Difference Between Their, There, and They're
Their shows possession (belonging to them): their house, their ideas. There indicates location or existence: over there, there are three. They're is a contraction of 'they are': they're coming, they're late. If you can substitute 'they are,' use they're. If it shows ownership, use their. Otherwise, use there.
Key Takeaways
- Their is a possessive pronoun showing that something belongs to a group of people.
- In formal writing, some style guides prefer 'they are' spelled out rather than 'they're.
- These words are homophones - they sound identical, which causes confusion in writing.
Explanation
Their is a possessive pronoun showing that something belongs to a group of people. Examples: Their car is blue. I like their music. The kids forgot their lunches. You can test by substituting 'his/her' - if it makes grammatical sense, 'their' is correct.
There indicates a place (over there, not here) or introduces a statement about existence (there is, there are). Examples: The book is over there. There are many options. Is anyone there? It often answers 'where?' or starts sentences introducing what exists.
They're is simply 'they are' shortened. When in doubt, expand the contraction and read the sentence. 'They're going to the store' becomes 'They are going to the store.' If it sounds right expanded, use they're. If not, choose their or there.
Things to Know
- In formal writing, some style guides prefer 'they are' spelled out rather than 'they're.'
- These words are homophones - they sound identical, which causes confusion in writing.
- Autocorrect often chooses incorrectly, so proofread carefully.