“They’re” is probably the simplest of the three to understand, so let’s begin with that. “They’re” is a contraction of the words “they” and “are.” If you can replace the version of the word you intend to use with “they are” then you should use the contraction “they’re”:
“I am going to the Osborne’s house, and they’re going to show me how to rock and roll.”
“Their” is a possessive pronoun used in cases to show plural ownership of something. Only use “their” when you’re talking about something that two or more people own. A fun way to remind yourself of this one is “heir” (like the heir to a throne) is in the word and heirs own their thrones.
“I am going to their house tomorrow night.
or
“This guitar is theirs, but they let me borrow it.”
“There” is, well, it’s a difficult word to define because it’s used for so much, but most of the time “there” is used for placement. Basically, if you’re not meaning “they are” or talking about ownership, then you should probably be using “there.” A handy tip that helps you straighten out the difference between “their” and “there” is that “here” is in “there.” “Here” is a place and “there” is typically a placement word, though it means other things too!
“I want to go there again tomorrow night!”
Here’s a little self-test you can take. The answers are in the first comment below.
- I went to the grocery store today and _____ aisles were a mess!
- They told me that _____ doing a massive overhaul of the store.
- That may be true, but _____ were some clues that lead me to believe otherwise.
- What I think is that _____ had been a squirrel infestation!
- With _____ beady little eyes and freaky paws, I bet the squirrels moved everything while the store was closed.
- I used to attend OSU and once I was on a walk _____, minding my own business, and was suddenly pelted with nuts!
- _____ aim was utterly impeccable!
- So I know how evolved _____ minds are.
- In fact, I bet one day _____ bound to take over the world!
- Psh, squirrels, _____ tricky little things
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