by Aldrin A Wilding-West

Created on: February 25, 2010

How to use 'there', 'their' or 'they're'.

A simple explanation with examples of common usage.  A must for writers or those learning the English language.

This guide is for you whether you are a novice writer who may have picked up bad habits, someone learning the language perhaps, or maybe you have simply never been sure which is the correct word to use in which context.

These straight forward and easy to understand examples of common uses will teach you where to use these similar sounding words confidently and correctly.

There (T H E R E) is a very versatile word that can indicate a place, location or direction........

“The best place to put it is there.”

“There are the keys you were looking for.”

“It’s that one, that one over there.”

“I went there the other day.”

......it can indicate a point or place in time......

“He paused there to give the music more emphasis.”

“It was best to end the programme there.”

......or it can call or bring attention to someone or something......

“There they go!”

“There you are!”

......it can even be used to express encouragement, satisfaction or relief......

“There we go!  You can do it!”

“There!  Finished perfectly!”

“There!  Thank goodness for that!”

Now we move on to their (T H E I R) which indicates possession and should only ever be used as such......

“Their dog was very noisy.”

“They looked after their children.”

“Can everyone remember their way home?”

“They left their shoes at the door.”

“It was their right to cancel if they wanted to.”

And finally ‘they’re’ (T H E Y ‘ R E) which is purely an abbreviation of ‘they are’, where the apostrophe takes the place of the missing letter ‘a’, and so should never be used in any other way......

“They’re a perfect pair.”

“If they’re going to come they’d better hurry.”

“They’re crazy, that lot!”

So then, it only remains to say.........

There is a definite way for people to use there, their or they’re at the correct place and the correct time.  As long as they’ve got their wits about them, they’re going to learn that there is a time and place for every word there is, and there is no reason that they’re ever going to need to use their words differently if they’re willing to take the time to learn.  There!  I’m sure you’ll be glad to know that there’s nothing more to it. That’s it!

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