There they are; they're in their car

There they are; they're in their car


Why would a language have three words that sound exactly the same but are spelled differently and have different meanings? I don't know, but that is just one of the many strange things one must deal with if one wants to learn English



there: "in or at that place", farther away than HERE; referring to the existence of

their: "pertaining to or belonging to them"; a possessive pronoun

they're: A contraction made up of THEY + ARE, with the apostrophe in place of the A



1. They're putting their suitcase over there on the cart

2. The police officer read the suspects their rights before arresting them

3.There are too many exceptions to the rules in English

4. Many students dropped their books when they ran to catch the bus

5. There were so many people in the theater that it was difficult to find their seats

6. Last words of many foolish criminals: "They're never going to take me alive!

7. The children licked their lips and their fingers after eating the messy cotton candy

8. The hunter whispered to his partner, "Is that a deer over there behind that tree?

9. The chef said to the host of the party, "They're really going to like this dessert!

10. "You two stand here, next to me, and the rest of you stand over there by the wall." instructed the director of the play



Questions to ask yourself when deciding which word to use

Will the sentence make sense if I replace the word with they are

Do the words that come immediately after the 'there' word refer to something that belongs to somebody? (their books, their lips, their fingers) ²

Could you replace the 'there' word with a pointing gesture? Is there a location mentioned