Your and You're
Your means belonging to you; you're is short for you are.
Usually taught in 3rd 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.
Your and You're at a glance
| Word | What it means | Example |
|---|---|---|
| your | belonging to you | Please hang up your coat. |
| you're | the short way of writing you are | I think you're going to like this book. |
The memory trick
The apostrophe is not decoration, it marks a missing letter. You're is you are with the a taken out, so read the sentence with you are put back. If it still makes sense, you need you're. Your book becomes you are book, which is nonsense, so it stays your.
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.
- Please hang up your coat.
- Is this your bike or the one from school?
- I think you're going to like this book.
- Tell me when you're ready to start.
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.
Please hang up ______ coat.
Answer: your
Is this ______ bike or the one from school?
Answer: your
I think ______ going to like this book.
Answer: you're
Tell me when ______ ready to start.
Answer: you're
Where this fits in the year
Your and You're normally comes up in 3rd 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.
Who's or Whose
Who's is short for who is or who has; whose asks who owns something. The same missing-letter rule that separates its from it's, with example sentences.
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 your and you're?
Your means belonging to you; you're is short for you are. In short: your = belonging to you; you're = the short way of writing you are.
How do I remember which one to use?
The apostrophe is not decoration, it marks a missing letter. You're is you are with the a taken out, so read the sentence with you are put back. If it still makes sense, you need you're. Your book becomes you are book, which is nonsense, so it stays your.
When do children learn your and you're?
your and you're usually come up around 3rd 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.