There vs. Their

Question

Hello.  I have a question regarding a sentence that I was writing recently and my writing software corrected the use of my word "there" to "their".  I am wondering if the software was correct.  Here is my sentence.  Is there someone that you would recommend?  Is the correct word to use here is there or their?

BarbaraPA · Accepted Answer

It is absolutely "there."

I can't imagine why it would "correct" it to "their."

Samuraifingers · Answer

Yeah - you are correct!

You have to realize that software isn't perfect - it can only provide HELP.

BUT - you were right - so no worries!

I've made a simple/short video about this EXACT topic...

check it out here - it gives some simple examples to always help you remember!

cheers
Nick

Anonymous · Answer

Hi, I just want to ask you about something from the begining of your video.

You said that you're going to talk about "homonyms" but then the whole lesson is about the homophones, isn't it?
I think the definition of homonyms is that their spelling is the same and also the pronunciation but they have different meaning. e.g. kind - kind
Sorry if I missed something important, but I had to write you this.
Your lectures are sure helpful, but careful about those little details which might be confusing for somebody...

With best wishes
Petra

(personal contact removed, please register and add it in your profile only)

Samuraifingers · Answer

Ah -

Thank you Petra!
You've raised an excellent point.

From Dictionary.com
"hom·o·phone

(hom'?-fon', ho'm?-) http://cache.lexico.com/help/ahd4/pronkey.html
BOF_HEAD> n. EOF_HEAD> BOF_DEF> One of two or more words, such as night and knight, that are pronounced the same but differ in meaning, origin, and sometimes spelling."
they're/there/their certainly ARE homophones...HOWEVER

Also from Dictionary.com
homonyms [(hom-uh-nimz)]

Two words that sound alike and may even be spelled alike but have different meanings, such as trunk (meaning part of an elephant) and trunk (meaning a storage chest). Often used with the same meaning as http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/homophone.

At least during my education - we ALWAYS referred to they're/their/there as homonyms...
However, I you are also correct in your meaning that they are homophones.... The point that I was trying to impart during the lesson, was the differences in meaning between the three!! Because I ALWAYS see this type of error in my student's writing: "I went to the store to buy milk but there selection was very limited." (this is clearly unacceptable usage in written work)
Essentially we are arguing over vocabulary here - "meta-language" (the vocabulary used to describe grammar) is only PARTIALLY useful...it's more important to understand the basic function and idea behind a grammer point.

For example - I can't explain to you what a gerrund is, but I can sure use them!
You might associate this with music - Greats like Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison could not read music and describe in musical notation what they did - but they still made phenominal music that touched thousands!
Thanks for your insightful, albeit slightly malapert, input.
Cheers,
Nick

Anonymous · Answer

by rule there is used as a verb to describe, while their is used as ownership, so there would be the correct spelling

BarbaraPA · Answer

Anonymousby rule there is used as a verb to describe, while their is used as ownership, so there would be the correct spelling

"There" is not a verb.

There vs. Their

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