Possessive Adjective THEIR — When and How to Use It

THEIR in Action — See the Pattern

Read these three sentences. Look at how their works:

• My neighbours love their garden. (The garden belongs to the neighbours.)
• The kids forgot their bags. (The bags belong to the kids.)
• Tom and Sara are at their house. (The house belongs to Tom and Sara.)

When to Use THEIR

Use their when the owner is two or more people who are not you. It replaces “they” + ownership: “They have a car” → “Their car.”

• Things owned by a group: “Their office is on the second floor.”
• Other people’s families: “Their children are at school.”
• Animals together: “The cats are eating their food.”
• Other countries, teams, companies: “Their team won the cup.”

Easy way to remember: They → their. Two or more people, not you. Both words start with “the.”

Real-Life Examples With THEIR

Here are examples you might say or hear in everyday life:

• My parents are at their friend’s house. (Belongs to my parents.)
• The students forgot their homework. (Belongs to the students.)
• Tom and Sara invited me to their wedding. (Belongs to Tom and Sara.)
• The dogs are eating their food. (The food belongs to the dogs.)
• Their flight was delayed by two hours. (The flight belongs to them.)

You are doing great. Now let’s look at the mistakes many learners make.

Three Mistakes to Avoid With THEIR

“Their” sounds exactly like two other English words: there (a place: “over there”) and they’re (short for “they are”). Even people who write English every day mix these up. The key is what the word does in the sentence.

How to remember: Their = belongs to them. There = a place (over there). They’re = they are. Three sounds the same, three different jobs.

Common “their” sentences: their car, their house, their children, their dog, their idea, their friends.

Test Yourself: THEIR

Choose the correct answer for each sentence. Click Check to see if you are right.

Keep Going — You Are Building Something

You just learned their — the sixth and final possessive adjective. You now have all six: my, your, his, her, our, their. With these, you can show ownership for every person in any conversation.

Now you can describe almost anything anyone owns. The next big skill is asking the questions that introduce new people and things into the conversation: what is that, where is it, who brought it, why is it broken? There are six tiny question words in English — and each one opens a different door.

Next lesson: Basic English Questions — What, Where, When, and More