Who's and Whose
Who's is short for who is or who has; whose asks who owns it.
Usually taught in 4th grade · these words sound exactly the same
Practice this pair
SpellCrush practice reads each word aloud, uses it in a spoken example sentence, and then asks your child to spell it — with instant feedback and a hint if they get stuck.
Two honest caveats. Practice is word-by-word: there is no mode yet that shows a sentence with a gap and asks which spelling fits, which is the format homophones really want. And the no-signup session runs a fixed set of sample words rather than the words on this page. Read the sentences below together first, then practice the spellings.
Who's and Whose at a glance
| Word | What it means | Example |
|---|---|---|
| who's | the short way of writing who is or who has | Who's knocking at the door? |
| whose | belonging to which person | Whose lunchbox is this? |
The memory trick
Same machine as its and it's: the apostrophe stands for the letter that was removed, so who's unpacks into who is. Whose has no apostrophe because it is a possessive word like his, hers and its, and none of those take one either.
Sentences that only work with one of them
Homophones are meaningless on their own, so learn them in sentences. Read each line aloud with your child, then cover the word and ask which spelling belongs there.
- Who's knocking at the door?
- Tell me who's coming to the party.
- Whose lunchbox is this?
- The boy whose dog ran off is still looking.
Fill in the blank
Same sentences, word removed. Answers are underneath each one, so cover the page with a hand or a sheet of paper.
______ knocking at the door?
Answer: who's
Tell me ______ coming to the party.
Answer: who's
______ lunchbox is this?
Answer: whose
The boy ______ dog ran off is still looking.
Answer: whose
Where this fits in the year
Who's and Whose normally comes up in 4th grade spelling. That page has the full word list for the year, with audio, so you can see what else is expected at the same stage.
Related pages
Its or It's
Its means belonging to it; it's is short for it is. The apostrophe marks a missing letter, never ownership - here is the swap test that proves which.
Your or You're
Your means belonging to you; you're is short for you are. Say the sentence with you are put back in - if it still works, you need the apostrophe.
There, Their or They're
There is a place, their means belonging to them, they're is short for they are. Three memory tricks that name the mechanism, plus example sentences.
Frequently asked
What is the difference between who's and whose?
Who's is short for who is or who has; whose asks who owns it. In short: who's = the short way of writing who is or who has; whose = belonging to which person.
How do I remember which one to use?
Same machine as its and it's: the apostrophe stands for the letter that was removed, so who's unpacks into who is. Whose has no apostrophe because it is a possessive word like his, hers and its, and none of those take one either.
When do children learn who's and whose?
who's and whose usually come up around 4th grade, though they keep causing errors well into adulthood. Because the words sound identical, no amount of reading them aloud will separate them — the meaning has to be attached to the spelling.