Explaining "They're," "Their" and "There"
Homonym pairs are often difficult for students to remember and use correctly — so adding a third word with the same pronunciation only makes things more complicated.
While it's easy to be fooled by the way they sound, students need to know that "they're," "their" and "there" are very different words with unique uses. But how can we explain the differences that make them distinct?
We've collected some explanations and example sentences you can use to illustrate how each word is used.
They’re
Function: short form of "they are"
"They're" refers to at least two people or things, or to a person whose gender is unknown or nonbinary.
They’re all in elementary school.
> They are all in elementary school.
They’re going to be late.
> They are going to be late.
They’re five dollars each.
> They are five dollars each.
Ask Dee if they're coming to the party.
> Ask Dee if they are coming to the party.
Using the other two words would result in strange, incorrect sentences.
There all in middle school.Their going to be late.
Their
Function: indicates possession
"Their" is the possessive form of "they." Like “his,” “her,” “my” and "your," it means that something belongs to someone.
- Jenny and John have really good taste; their home is beautiful.
- My two dogs love playing with this ball. It’s their favorite toy.
- As the fans began to cheer, their voices filled the stadium.
This is also true when referring to a person who is not called a he or a she.
- Taylor loves karaoke. Their singing voice is amazing.
There
Function: refers to a place or location far from the speaker
"There," of course, is the opposite of “here.”
- It will take us about an hour to get there.
- Paris? Yes, I went there last year.
It's often used together with “over” when referring to a location that isn't nearby.
- Your keys are over there on the counter.
When used with the verb “to be,” it indicates that something exists.
- There is a great bar just around the corner from here.
- Paul said there was no movie theater in this town, but there is.
Wrap-up
Sharing these and your own original examples will give students the models they need to understand how this important trio words should be used.
Be sure to stress that they should be extra careful when writing, as even native speakers sometimes confuse "they're," "their" and "there" in text. Although the reader would likely be able to understand even with a spelling mistake, it's better to stop bad habits like this before they begin.
