their/there/they’re

There, there, dear reader, don’t be distraught by the spelling of “there,” “their,” or “they’re” anymore. This has to be the most confused set of words in the English language. Social media would practically shut down if posts with this typo were denied. Am I exaggerating? Maybe. But just a little bit.

Quick review:

• There – A place (e.g., I want to go there). Hint: you’ll find the word “here” inside of “there.” Both of these words are places. If you can swap out “here” for “there” in your sentence, you need this t-h-e-r-e form.
• They’re – A contraction meaning “they are.” Why do contractions continue to baffle us? The world will never know.
• Their – A possessive pronoun (e.g. That was their dog). Hint: you’ll find the word “heir” inside of “their.” And an heir has lots of stuff to possess, right?

You’ll remember now, won’t you? Please? Don’t make me appeal to the social media powers that be. I hear grammarians have some pull. Maybe. I tell myself. (sigh)More