Their versus there versus they're

These three words sound alike, but each has a different job. Their shows possession. There points to a place or introduces a statement about existence. They're contracts they are. Read the whole sentence to decide which meaning fits.

Their shows possession

Their is a possessive pronoun. It tells you something belongs to or is associated with a group: “The students submitted their assignments.” “The teachers changed their schedule.” Like other possessive pronouns, their has no apostrophe.

There points to a place or introduces existence

There can be an adverb pointing to a location: “The library is over there.” It can also introduce an existential construction: “There are three essays to review.” In the second sentence, there is not a place where the essays sit; it introduces the fact that the essays exist. The verb agrees with the noun that follows: “There is one essay” and “There are three essays.”

They're means they are

They're is a contraction. The apostrophe replaces the missing letter a in they are. “They're waiting” means “They are waiting.” “They're the finalists” means “They are the finalists.” If the expanded phrase does not fit, they're is not the right word.

Use the sentence test

1. Try replacing they're with they are. If the sentence still works, they're is correct.
2. If not, ask whether the sentence shows ownership. Use their for possession.
3. If it does not show ownership, ask whether there points to a location or introduces something that exists. Use there.
4. Read the full sentence once more to confirm the meaning and subject-verb agreement.

Tricky examples

A sentence can contain more than one of the words: “They're leaving their folders there.” Expand they're: “They are leaving their folders there.” The grammar works. Their marks ownership, and there points to where the folders are being left.

In “There are students waiting outside,” do not choose their just because students follows the blank. The sentence is not naming something the students own. There introduces the existence of students waiting. In “Their students are waiting,” by contrast, their identifies which students.

Common mistakes

• Choosing their before any plural noun. Ownership must make sense in the sentence.
• Using there for possession because both words contain the same letters except the first three.
• Expanding there to they are. Only they're expands that way.
• Adding an apostrophe to their. The possessive pronoun has no apostrophe.
• Ignoring the noun after an existential there construction and writing “There is three reasons.”

Fast exam check

Expand they're first. Then separate the two remaining meanings: ownership is their; place or existence is there. On an editing item, test the word in the whole clause, not just the neighboring noun.

Key takeaway

Their belongs to them. There indicates a place or introduces existence. They're means they are. The substitution test handles the contraction; context distinguishes the other two.

Match each spelling to its grammatical job

Their is a possessive determiner: “Their application is complete.” It answers whose application and appears before a noun. There can refer to a place—“Put the forms there”—or introduce a sentence with a postponed subject: “There are three forms to complete.” They’re is a contraction of they are: “They’re ready.” The words sound alike, so meaning and grammar determine the spelling.

Use the expansion test for they’re: replace it with they are. “They’re reviewing the form” becomes “They are reviewing the form,” so the contraction works. “Their reviewing the form” would suggest a possessive construction and is not the intended sentence. To choose between there and their, ask whether the sentence needs a location/existential word or possession.

Check existential there for agreement

In “There is a form” and “There are forms,” the verb agrees with the noun that follows, not with there. When the noun phrase contains more than one item, use a plural verb: “There are a form and two notices” is grammatically possible but awkward. A clearer order puts the verb close to its subject: “A form and two notices are on the desk.”

There can also appear in an introductory phrase that does not indicate a physical location: “There remains one issue to resolve.” The subject is issue, so the verb is singular. Locate the real subject rather than treating there as the subject in every sentence.

Proofread homophones in context

Spell-checkers may accept all three words, so read the sentence for its meaning. In “The students left their books over there,” their shows ownership and there identifies a place. In “They’re meeting there with their adviser,” expand they’re to they are, then check the location and possession separately. These words should be tested individually, not by the sound of the sentence.

The same strategy works for other homophones: identify the grammatical role, substitute a meaning or expansion, and reread. A correct spelling used in the wrong role is still an editing error. Slowing down to ask “whose?”, “where?”, or “they are?” catches most instances.

• Their answers whose? and normally precedes a noun.
• There signals a place or introduces an existential construction.
• They’re must expand to they are.
• In existential sentences, find the real subject to check the verb.
• Use context because spell-checkers will accept all three spellings.

Check there is and there are against the real subject

In an existential phrase, there introduces the statement and the following noun controls the verb: “There is one reason” and “There are several reasons.” Do not choose are because there sounds plural or is because the word is short. In a location sentence, there is an adverb and the ordinary subject comes before the verb: “The reasons are there in the report.”

Their may refer to one person with singular they: “Each candidate submitted their form.” It still marks possession, while they’re remains the contraction for they are. To proofread, expand they’re, ask whose for their, and locate the subject for there is/are. The same sound can represent three grammatical jobs.