the (they, there) are

Writers often swap they and there because they sound alike. One is a pronoun (they); the other marks place or existence (there).

Use quick substitution tests, rewrite templates, and many wrong/right pairs below to diagnose and fix sentences fast. Examples cover work, school, and casual contexts.

Quick distinction

Use they when referring to people or things. Use there to indicate place or to introduce existence (there is/there are).

They = pronoun for people, animals, or groups (They left; I saw them).
There = place or existential subject (Put it there; There are three options).
Test: substitute "them"/"those" for they and "here"/"in that place" for there. If substitution fits, use that word.

Core grammatical difference

They acts as a subject or object pronoun. There is an adverb of place or a dummy subject in existential clauses.

They → answers Who? or What? (plural or singular they). Example: They finished the report.
There → answers Where? or signals existence. Example: There is a report on the desk.
If "them"/"those" fits, use they. If "here"/"in that place" fits, use there.

Wrong: There left the meeting early.
Right: They left the meeting early.
Wrong: They is a notice on the door.
Right: There is a notice on the door.
Wrong: There forgot to submit their timesheet.
Right: They forgot to submit their timesheet.
Wrong: They are ten miles from here.
Right: They are ten miles from here.

Examples: common wrong/right pairs (work, school, casual)

Each wrong sentence shows a typical slip; the corrected line shows natural usage. Read the corrected version aloud to confirm meaning.

Work - Wrong: There emailed the client the revised contract.
Right: They emailed the client the revised contract.
Work - Wrong: They is a demo scheduled in the main hall.
Right: There is a demo scheduled in the main hall.
Work - Wrong: There approved the vendor selection without a vote.
Right: They approved the vendor selection without a vote.
School - Wrong: They is evidence that supports the hypothesis.
Right: There is evidence that supports the hypothesis.
School - Wrong: There wrote their responses in pencil.
Right: They wrote their responses in pencil.
School - Wrong: Their is a graph showing the trend in Figure 2.
Right: There is a graph showing the trend in Figure 2.
Casual - Wrong: There coming over later-want coffee?
Right: They're coming over later-want coffee?
Casual - Wrong: They over there by the street corner.
Right: They're over there by the street corner.
Casual - Wrong: Their at the park if you want to join.
Right: They're at the park if you want to join.

Rewrite help: step-by-step fixes you can copy

Run three quick tests: substitute pronouns, test for place/existence, and expand contractions. Then apply a short rewrite template.

Test A (pronoun): If "them" or "those" fits, use they/them + verb.
Test B (place/existence): If "here" or "in that place" fits, use there or there + be + noun.
Test C (contraction confusion): Expand they're → they are; if that makes sense, keep they're; otherwise use their or there.

Rewrite 1: Wrong: There emailed HR about the schedule. → They emailed HR about the schedule.
Rewrite 2: Wrong: They is a broken chair in room 210. → There is a broken chair in room 210.
Rewrite 3: Wrong: There're three attachments in the message. → There are three attachments in the message.
Rewrite 4: Wrong: Their going to finish the draft tonight. → They're going to finish the draft tonight. (They're = they are)
Rewrite 5: Wrong: They left it over their. → They left it over there.
Rewrite 6: Wrong: There responsible for the error. → They are responsible for the error. (Or: The team is responsible for the error.)

Real usage and tone: when choice affects formality

In formal writing, prefer explicit nouns: use there is/are for existence and replace vague they with the committee, the team, or the author. In emails, name the actor when ambiguity matters.

Casual messages tolerate contractions but still benefit from the substitution test-many typos come from fast typing.

Formal: "There are three outstanding issues that require action."
Business (clearer): "The design team will deliver the mockups on Friday." instead of "They will deliver the mockups."
Casual: "They're on their way" - check both the contraction (they're) and the possessive (their).

Formal: There appears to be an inconsistency in the dataset.
Business: The auditors (they) will review the files tomorrow.
Casual: They're at the cafe; we can meet there in 10.

Try your own sentence

Test the whole sentence, not just the single word. Context usually makes the correct choice obvious.

Memory tricks that actually stick

Use three quick checks to catch most errors: substitution, apostrophe expansion, and the Who/Where question.

Substitution test: Replace the word with them/those. If it fits, use they. Replace with here/in that place. If it fits, use there.
Apostrophe test: Expand they're → they are; if it makes sense, they're is correct.
Question test: Ask "Who?" → they. Ask "Where?" or "Does it exist?" → there.

Subtest: Sentence: "_____ is a problem." Try "They is a problem" (wrong) → use "There is a problem."
Apostrophe: Sentence: "They're finished" → expand to "They are finished" (works → they're OK).

Similar mistakes to watch for

The trio their / they're / there causes many errors. Fixing they vs there often requires checking the other two as well.

Also watch its/it's and who/whom; they behave like common proofreading traps.

their = possessive (their idea); they're = they are; there = place or existential subject.
its = possessive (its color); it's = it is / it has.
When you change they ↔ there, re-read the whole sentence for these siblings.

Wrong: There bike is chained outside.
Right: Their bike is chained outside.
Wrong: Their going to start at noon.
Right: They're going to start at noon.

Hyphenation, spelling oddities, and contractions

Hyphenation doesn't affect they vs there, but missing apostrophes and typo forms do. Grammar-aware checks catch usage errors that spell-checkers miss.

They're = they are. Expand to check. If expansion fails, choose their or there.
Typo forms like "theyre" or misplaced punctuation can appear in informal text-correct the apostrophe and the word choice.
Spell-checkers rarely flag wrong homophones; use context tests or grammar tools instead.

Wrong: Theyre going to post the results later.
Right: They're going to post the results later.
Wrong: Their's a problem with the file.
Right: There's a problem with the file. (There is = there is)

Spacing and punctuation traps

Fix spacing and punctuation first; they often hide whether the clause needs a pronoun or an existential there.

Don't split contractions with spaces: they 're is incorrect. Use they're.
If punctuation hides the subject, rewrite the sentence so the subject is explicit.
Use commas to separate clauses so the true subject stands out: "There are, however, two exceptions."

Wrong: They 're unavailable until Monday.
Right: They're unavailable until Monday.
Wrong: There teams failed to deliver, the deadline passed.
Right: There were several teams that failed to deliver before the deadline.

FAQ

How do I know when to use they vs there?

Ask Who? for they and Where?/Does it exist? for there. Substitute "them"/"those" for they and "here"/"in that place" for there to test quickly.

Is there ever a case where "there" is a pronoun?

No. There is an adverb of place or a dummy subject in existential clauses. Pronouns are they/them/their.

What's the difference between they're, their, and there?

They're = they are (contraction). Their = possessive adjective. There = place or existential subject. Expand contractions and use substitution tests when unsure.

Can "they" be singular?

Yes. Singular they is used for a person whose gender is unknown or who uses they pronouns. It remains a pronoun and never replaces there.

Why didn't my spell-check catch a they/there error?

Spell-checkers flag misspellings, not incorrect word choice. Both they and there are valid words. Use context-aware grammar checks or the substitution tests above.

Quick proofreading checklist

Run substitution tests: them/those → they; here/in that place → there.
Expand contractions: they're → they are. If that reads well, keep they're.
If the actor is unclear in business or academic writing, replace they with a specific noun (the team, the students).
Fix spacing and punctuation, then re-check pronouns and existential constructions.