Their, there, and they’re

I am not a grammar nazi. My friend Nick is. He has a journalism degree and is never afraid to point out every misspelling, punctuation, or other grammar error he sees.

I readily admit that I am not a grammar king. I'm sure this post could be picked apart by an expert, and many mistakes would be found. However the one thing that does drive me absolutely nuts when it comes to the subject of the written English language, is that it seems as if no one under the age of 30 has any clue how to properly use "their, there, and they're". Go through your Facebook news feed, I promise you will find many examples of this in no time.

The three possible options for this, in my mind, are: #1 English teachers are no longer teaching the difference between the three versions of the word in American schools. #2 People have forgotten what they once learned and are too lazy to take 5 seconds and "Google it" and find out if they are using the proper version. #3 Everyone under 30 is just that dumb. My hunch is that it is #2, but one can never be sure.

Here is a quick lesson for those of you that may need help. "There" is used when describing a place: "put it over there" or "I am going there". "Their" is used as a possessive: "it is their house" or "trees lose their leaves". "They're" is a contraction, short for "they are", and is used as such: "they're going to the movie" or "they're closing the store at 6 today".

You're welcome.