There, Their And They’re

Introduction

There, their, and they’re are some of the words that are always confused in English. Although they are spelt differently, this doesn’t seem much helpful for language users not to confuse them. Because they are homophones, they are misspelled and used incorrectly even by native speakers.

There is the opposite of here and it means “at that place”. It is used to refer to a place previously mentioned so as to avoid repetition. In that case, it is considered a pronoun because it replaces a noun (place).

Examples:

1. I didn’t want to work in Boston, but they forced me to go there.
2. There were a lot of people at the bus station.
3. There is a man standing in front of Brown’s house.

Their is a determiner (third-person plural) which means “belongs to them”. It is a possessive adjective used to refer to plural nouns, people, animals, things, etc.

Examples:

1. Students left their books open and went to the schoolyard.
2. Good people do their work appropriately.
3. My little children cry when I take their toys away from them.

They’re is a contracted form of they are. It is a third-person plural subject pronoun+verb (be).

Examples:

1. Jane and David have been engaged for more than two years. They’re (they are) going to get married next month.
2. How are your children? I hope they’re (they are) doing well.
3. My parents are on the train now. I think they’re (they are) getting here at approximately six p.m.

Exercises about there, their, and they’re

Fill the in the blanks with there, their, or they’re

1. …………. went on a camping trip with …………… friends.
2. ……………. set up ………….. tents.
3. ……………… are a lot of tents on the beach.
4. They’re …………… with ……………… classmates.
5. ……………. going to save some money to buy a new house.
6. Is that ………….. dog over ……………?
7. Let’s help them understand ………….. lessons.
8. I will never go to …………… house again.
9. They always offer ……………. love and support to me. I appreciate that.
10. ……………. was once a very poor girl who made amazing successes in her life.
11. …………. reading ……………. books over ……………….
12. I don’t know where ………………. at this moment.
13. …………… are lots of people waiting outside.
14. Suddenly, ……………… was a loud bang.
15. If they call us, ask for ………….. phone numbers.
16. The ball is over …………….
17. The workers haven’t received …………… wages yet.
18. The students haven’t finished taking down ………… notes yet.
19. I do believe that ………………. are still lots of chances for everybody.
20. Paris? I have been ……………… once.

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