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Scribbr
scribbr.com › home › contractions (grammar) | definition & examples
Contractions (Grammar) | Definition & Examples
May 2, 2025 - They’re is the contraction of “they are,” while their is the possessive form of “they,” meaning “belonging to them.” · Examples: There, their, and they’reTheir house is near ours.
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San Jose State University
sjsu.edu › writingcenter › docs › handouts › Contractions.pdf pdf
San José State University Writing Center www.sjsu.edu/writingcenter
3. They’ve been trimming the trees at the park since this morning; I haven’t been able to ... Contractions, Fall 2011. Rev. Summer 2014. ... Nordquist, Richard. "A List of Standard Contractions in English." About Education.
People also ask

What are some examples of contractions?
Some of the most common contractions in English include can’t, it’s, they’ve, what’s, and would’ve.
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grammarly.com
grammarly.com › blog › grammar › contractions
What Are Contractions in Writing? Definition and Examples | Grammarly
What is the difference between an abbreviation and a contraction?
Abbreviations and contractions are both used to shorten a word, but in different ways. · An abbreviation is formed using the initial letters (or sometimes other parts) of a longer word or phrase to represent the whole. Common examples include “Mr.” for “Mister,” “Dr.” for “Doctor,” and “NASA” for “National Aeronautics and Space Administration.” They are used in formal writing as well as everyday conversations. · A contraction, on the other hand, is formed by combining two words and omitting one or more letters. The deleted letters are replaced with an apostrophe (e.g., “cannot” becomes “can’t”
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scribbr.com
scribbr.com › home › contractions (grammar) | definition & examples
Contractions (Grammar) | Definition & Examples
What are contractions?
Contractions are two or more words that are combined and shortened to save time. Typically, you can identify a contraction by the apostrophe, as with isn’t or they’ve—but don’t confuse contractions with possessive nouns, which also use apostrophes.
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grammarly.com
grammarly.com › blog › grammar › contractions
What Are Contractions in Writing? Definition and Examples | Grammarly
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Grammarly
grammarly.com › blog › grammar › contractions
What Are Contractions in Writing? Definition and Examples | Grammarly
August 10, 2022 - Contractions are a kind of abbreviation that combines two or more words by removing certain letters and usually adding an apostrophe. Only certain words can be contracted: typically small and common words (not, is/are), especially pronouns (I, he/she/it, they), and modal verbs (can, will, might, must, should, would, could).
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Cambridge Dictionary
dictionary.cambridge.org › us › grammar › british-grammar › contractions
Contractions - English Grammar Today - Cambridge Dictionary
Not: I’m n’t or I am n’t. They are not is contracted to they aren’t or they’re not. The isn’t / aren’t contractions are more common after nouns. The ’s / ’re not contractions are more common after pronouns: The cakes aren’t ready yet. She’s not a friend of mine.
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Brainly
brainly.com › medicine › college › what is the correct contraction for "they are"? a. their b. they're c. the're d. no contraction used
[FREE] What is the correct contraction for "they are"? A. Their B. They're C. The're D. No contraction used - brainly.com
For instance, you can say, "They're going to win the game," where 'They're' stands for 'they are'. In another context, you might say, "Their performance was outstanding," showing ownership with 'their'.
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University of Nevada, Reno
unr.edu › university › writing & speaking center › writing & speaking resources › contractions
Contractions | University Writing & Speaking Center | University of Nevada, Reno
Often contractions can be confused with possessive pronouns. While contractions use apostrophes, possessive pronouns do not. ... Example: Your dog is very cute. ... You’re the best student in the class. ... The spider ate the fly that was in its web. ... It’s fine that you cannot come into work tomorrow! ... They’re coming into town tomorrow.
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LanguageTool
languagetool.org › home › contractions: what they are and how to form them
Contractions: What They Are and How To Form Them
July 29, 2025 - But some contractions cause even more confusion—for English language learners and native speakers alike—because they’re homophones. Take for example it’s and its. Many people mistakenly add an apostrophe even though they want to show possession: in that case, use its. Have you seen the new house? Its backyard is huge. Similarly, they’re, there, and their also cause a lot of confusion as does let’s and lets.
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Merriam-Webster
merriam-webster.com › grammar & usage › commonly confused › how to use they're, there, and their | merriam-webster
How to Use They're, There, and Their | Merriam-Webster
March 11, 2025 - Their is the possessive pronoun ... there" and "stop right there"; they're is a contraction of "they are," as in "they're getting married."...
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GCFGlobal
edu.gcfglobal.org › en › grammar › contractions › 1
Grammar: Contractions
Words like can't (can + not), don't (do + not), and I've (I + have) are all contractions. People use contractions in both speaking and writing. They're so common that movies and books often try to make characters seem old-fashioned or strange by having them never use contractions.
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/grammar › can i use “they’re” as a contraction for “they were”?
r/grammar on Reddit: Can I use “they’re” as a contraction for “they were”?
November 6, 2023 - Maybe in spoken english "they were" might get shortened, but in written english "they're" is pretty much alwasy "they are" ... Thanks for the responses. I’m not a writer it’s just something my autocorrect does sometimes, it made me wonder if that’s correct. More like auto”wrong” ... I'd say no. I don't know of any dialect that would ever do that.
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Enchanted Learning
enchantedlearning.com › grammar › contractions › index.shtml
Contractions - Enchanted Learning
March 9, 2006 - In a contraction, an apostrophe takes the place of the missing letter or letters. Some contractions are: I’m (I am), can’t (cannot), how’s (how is), and Ma’am (Madam). For example, “don’t” is a contraction that is short for “do not”; the apostrophe in “don’t” takes the ...
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QuillBot
quillbot.com › home › contractions (grammar) | definition, list & examples
Contractions (Grammar) | Definition, List & Examples
A few contractions are commonly confused with possessive adjectives that sound the same but never have apostrophes. Possessive adjectives have a possessive relationship with another noun in a sentence. For example, “their garden” means “the garden that belongs to them.” · Their and they’re: Only use “their” when you mean “belonging to them.” The contraction “they’re” is correct for “they are.”
Published   May 12, 2025
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Scribbr
scribbr.com › home › there, their, they’re | meaning, examples & difference
There, Their, They’re | Meaning, Examples & Difference
September 11, 2023 - “They’re” is a contraction of “they are” used in conversation or informal writing. “Their” is a possessive referring to the same “they” from earlier in the sentence. The kids are with their aunt and uncle, but I’m not sure how long they’re going to stay there. In this example, all three words are used: first “their” (the kids’), then “they’re” (they are), then “there” (at their aunt and uncle’s home).
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Thesaurus.com
thesaurus.com › e › grammar › contractions
What Are Contractions And How Do You Use Them? | Thesaurus.com
August 31, 2022 - Sometimes, writers will specifically choose to use contractions for reasons other than the fact that they just come naturally. Because contractions are so common in verbal communication, a writer/author may choose to use them to mimic conversational speech. For example, a story may include dialogue that reads I s’pose he’d’ve done nothin’ ‘bout it. Contraction-heavy sentences like this make dialogue sound more like natural speech. Contractions are also commonly used in poetry, especially older poetry. For example, a line of poetry may read ’Twas ne’er a time o’ peace oft’ known.
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Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Wikipedia:List_of_English_contractions
Wikipedia:List of English contractions - Wikipedia
This list is part of the internal Wikipedia Manual of Style. For encyclopedic information see English auxiliaries and contractions. This is a list of contractions used in the Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Abbreviations; these are to be avoided anywhere other than in direct quotations in encyclopedic ...
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freeCodeCamp
freecodecamp.org › news › what-is-a-contraction-grammar-and-definition
What is a Contraction? Grammar and Definition
September 20, 2021 - Does the sentence sound right when you use they are? Then use they’re. Their shows possesion. For example,Their dog bit me last night or I don’t like their attitude. Finally, There indicates a place, a location. For example,I wish I was there instead or I’m never going there again. And there you have it! This article gave an overview of contractions and how to use them in both spoken and written English.
Top answer
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In the American English that I'm familiar with, native speakers do not typically say Where you going? To my ear, it is usually pronounced with an extra beat, making it Where r you going? which I would represent in writing with the contraction where're. This is in contrast to the more formal where are.

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In English, are contracts to 're. Technically, you can use a contraction wherever you might normally use the full, written out word. However, you should be very careful when doing this. Contractions are:

  • Informal : While contractions can be very useful in written English, many experts caution against the use of contractions in formal communication. Since contractions tend to add a light and informal tone to your writing, they are often inappropriate for academic research papers, business presentations, and other types of official correspondence.

  • Sometimes hard to distinguish from other words in the sentence: Saying "Where're" out loud leads to something along the lines of where-er. As "where're" is not a common contraction, many people will have trouble understanding.

  • Used more for speaking: Since contractions are, as mentioned above, informal, they tend to be used more in speech. Because of this, you may not want to use "here're" and "where're" because they are hard to pronounce and differentiate from other words in the sentence.

In short, you can use those contractions, and you can technically affix "'re" to any word which is followed by are. However, use caution for the reasons above.

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Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Contraction_(grammar)
Contraction (grammar) - Wikipedia
3 weeks ago - It is also mandatory to avoid the repetition of a sound when the conjunction si ("if") is followed by il ("he", "it") or ils ("they"), which begin with the same vowel sound i: *si il → s'il ("if it", if he"); *si ils → s'ils ("if they"). Certain prepositions are also mandatorily merged with masculine and plural direct articles: au for à le, aux for à les, du for de le, and des for de les. However, the contraction of cela (demonstrative pronoun "that") to ça is optional and informal. In informal speech, a personal pronoun may sometimes be contracted onto a following verb. For example, je ne sais pas (IPA: [ʒənəsɛpa], "I don't know") may be pronounced roughly chais pas (
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University of Sussex
sussex.ac.uk › informatics › punctuation › apostrophe › contractions
Contractions : The Apostrophe
Others, however, are perfectly normal in formal writing: even the most dignified music critic would call Ofra Harnoy's instrument a cello; he would no more use violoncello than he would apply the word omnibus to a London double-decker. Important note: Contractions must also be carefully distinguished from abbreviations. Abbreviations are things like Mr for Mister, lb. for pound(s), bc for before Christ and e.g. for for example.