Although they all sound the same, the three words there, their and they’re all have very different meanings.
Do you ever get confused over which one to use? Below are some tips that will help you choose.
There
There indicates a place.
Examples:
- I need to go there sometime soon
- When will you go over there?
- There is a parking space outside that store
Their
Their indicates ownership – belonging to someone.
Examples:
- This is their car
- Their turn is next
- Speak to their parents
Choosing between ‘there’ and ‘their’
Here’s the first tip:
Take away the ‘T’ and what do you have left? Either ‘here’, indicating a place, or ‘heir’.
An ‘heir’ inherits, and then owns things! Therefore, when you add the ‘T’ back in, ‘their’ owns things, and ‘there’ is a place.
They’re
The apostrophe in the middle of ‘they’re’ indicates that the word is a contraction. That is, it’s two words blended into one. The apostrophe indicates where the missing letter is—and the missing sound. In this case, “they’re” is a contraction of “they are”. So if you could replace the word with “they are”, then “they’re” is the word to use.
Here are some other examples of other contractions:
- It’s = it is
- You’re = you are
- Here’s = here is
- Let’s = let us
- Don’t = do not
Some contractions are missing more than one letter:
- I’d = I would
- She’ll = she will
- I’ve = I have
Here’s the second tip:
If you can replace the word “their” with “our” and your sentence still makes sense, then you’ve chosen the correct word.
Lastly, let’s add an ‘s’ to our three words. They all have a different result.
There: If you add an ‘s’, the only option is to add an apostrophe, as in there’s. “There’s” is another contraction, meaning ‘there is’. There’s something I need to tell you.
Their: Adding an ‘s’ creates theirs = ownership still, but no apostrophe. The book is theirs.
They’re: You cannot add an ‘s’ to they’re—it does not create a valid word.