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their

[ thair; unstressed ther ]
/ ðɛər; unstressed ðər /

pronoun

a form of the possessive case of plural they used as an attributive adjective, before a noun: their home;their rights as citizens;their departure for Rome.
a form of the possessive case of singular they used as an attributive adjective, before a noun:
  1. (used to refer to a generic or unspecified person previously mentioned, about to be mentioned, or present in the immediate context): Someone left their book on the table.A parent should read to their child.
  2. (used to refer to a specific or known person previously mentioned, about to be mentioned, or present in the immediate context): I’m glad my teacher last year had high expectations for their students.
  3. (used to refer to a nonbinary or gender-nonconforming person previously mentioned, about to be mentioned, or present in the immediate context): My cousin Sam is bad at math, but their other grades are good.

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Compare theirs.

Origin of their

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English their(e), ther(e), from Old Norse theirra “their”; replacing Old English thāra, thǣra; cf. they

usage note for their

See he1, me, they.

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH their

their , there, they're

Words nearby their

theine, inside track, the, Inspector-General, The, in thing, the, Invisible Man, The, their, theirn, theirs, theirself, theism, theist
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

British Dictionary definitions for their

their
/ (ðɛə) /

determiner

of, belonging to, or associated in some way with themtheir finest hour; their own clothes; she tried to combat their mocking her
belonging to or associated in some way with people in general not including the speaker or people addressedin many countries they wash their clothes in the river
belonging to or associated in some way with an indefinite antecedent such as one, whoever, or anybodyeveryone should bring their own lunch

Word Origin for their

C12: from Old Norse theira (genitive plural); see they, them

undefined their

See they
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012