theirs | TKG English Learner's Dictionary

theirspronoun

American /ðɛrz/ British /ðeəz/

very commondefining vocabulary

the thing or things belonging to or connected with two or more people already mentioned, or with a person of unstated sex
Theirs is the independent possessive, used without a following noun: this car is theirs. The possessive determiner, used directly before a noun, is the different word their (their car), a separate entry.
- This suitcase is theirs, not ours.
- Is that dog theirs or the neighbors'?
- The choice was theirs to make.
- Whose turn is it? Theirs.
Compare ours

Word family

they (the subject form)
them (the object form)
their (the possessive, directly before a noun)
themselves

Usage

Theirs never comes directly before a noun; that place belongs to their (their car, not theirs car).

Common mistakes

This book is their's. This book is theirs.
Theirs is a possessive pronoun and never takes an apostrophe, unlike a possessive noun such as Sam's.

This is theirs car. This is their car.
Directly before a noun, use their, not theirs.

For translators

Grammar trap English marks the independent possessive with its own form (theirs, hers, ours), separate from the possessive determiner (their, her, our) that goes before a noun; many languages use one possessive form throughout.