How to Use You're and Your

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Most people mix up "you're" and "your" from time to time. However, you can learn to avoid this common writing mistake by memorizing the proper way to use each word.

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Using You're and Your

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  1. The best way to do that is to sound it out. There is a replacement test that will tell you for certain which word will fit. Read the sentence with you are in place of where the your/you're is intended. If it makes sense, then you're would be right. If not, then your would fit. [1] You could also replace your with my in the sentence. If it fits, then use your. [2]
  2. A mnemonic is a device that helps you remember something. You may find a mnemonic helpful when remembering the difference between you're and your. Elements such as parallelism and vivid imagery are usually effective mnemonic tools.
    • Consider the sentence "If you're writing it you're , you're writing it right." You are doing something when you write, and thus the contraction you're is correct.
    • You could also try something like the sentence "Your Outraged Unicorns Race," where the first letter of each word spells out the correct usage. Because the unicorns belong to you, they're your unicorns.
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  3. Other examples of contractions include doesn't for does not, they're for they are, and can't for cannot. [3]
    • " You're a good friend" means "You are a good friend."
    • "I don't know what you're talking about" means "I do not know what you are talking about."
  4. It thus fulfills two very important roles in a sentence or clause. Because it includes both a pronoun and a verb, you're will always be the subject and at least part of the verb of any clause in which it appears.
  5. The possessive form refers to something that a person has, something that belongs to the person in question, or the person you are talking to. Your reflects ownership, as in "yours, mine, and ours". [4]
    • "Is your stomach growling?"
    • " Your book is on the table."
  6. In most cases, your will not be followed by an adjective (a word that describes something) when that adjective is describing the person that you are talking to. [5]
    • In other words, saying " Your very kind" will almost never be correct. "Your very kind" would only be correct if someone were describing a noun, as in "Your nice son brought me my coat." Here, your nice is correct because nice is describing the person's son.
  7. Each of the following examples shows an incorrect use of your/you're, and why it is incorrect.
    • "I can't read you're handwriting."
      • Incorrect, because the contraction for you are is being used in place of the possessive form of you. "I can't read you are handwriting"' doesn't make sense. It should be replaced with your .
    • "If your hungry, then you should probably eat something."
      • Incorrect because there is no possession in question. You can be hungry, but in English you don't possess hunger. This passes the replacement test. Rewriting it with you are fits. Your should be replaced here with you're , or you are .
    • "I think your very smart."
      • Again, incorrect. The "very smart" does not belong to the person that you are talking to — this doesn't make any sense. Replace your with you're , or you are .
    • "I'm smarter than you're "
      • Correct, because the contraction for you are has been used in place of the possessive form of you. However, this unconventional usage is likely to confuse people, so avoid ending a sentence with you're even if it's grammatically correct.
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You're and Your Usage Chart

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  • Question
    How should I write "your stupid"?
    Community Answer
    Well, to avoid the risk of being called the same in return, write it correctly, as: "You're stupid."
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  • Question
    Is it to correct to write: You're welcome?
    Community Answer
    Yes. You could also write, "You are welcome." Both ways are correct.
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  • Question
    What is the right way to write: "Share if your a giants fan."?
    Community Answer
    The correct way to write this is: "Share if you're a Giants fan."
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      Tips

      • Keep in mind that the word your will never be followed by the words the , a , or an . [6]
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      • There is another word, yore , that sounds just the same as you're and your . Yore refers to a time long past and isn't used often in casual speech. [7]
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      • Just remember "You're not spelling your words correctly," and it all falls into place.
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      References

      1. ↑ https://writingexplained.org/your-vs-youre-difference
      2. ↑ https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/grammar/british-grammar/pronouns/pronouns-possessive-my-mine-your-yours-etc
      3. ↑ https://edu.gcfglobal.org/en/grammar/contractions/1/
      4. ↑ https://www.grammar.cl/Notes/Possessive_Pronouns.htm
      5. ↑ https://www.lawlessenglish.com/english-mistakes/your-vs-youre/
      6. ↑ https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/grammar/british-grammar/determiners/a-an-and-the
      7. ↑ https://grammarist.com/homophones/yore-vs-your-or-youre/

      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      To use you're and your correctly, remember that you're is short for "you are," and your is used to show ownership, like in "your house." If you don't know which one to use, try writing "you are" instead. If the sentence still makes sense, use you're . If the sentence doesn't make sense, use your . To learn more tricks for using you're and your correctly, like coming up with a mnemonic to help you remember, keep reading!

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