Which to use
“their” and “this” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #56
- “their” frequency rank
- #15
- “this” frequency rank
- 71
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | their | this |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Belonging to, from, of, or relating to, them (plural). | The (thing) here (used in indicating something or someone nearby). |
Where the eye mixes their and this
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between their and this
A purely visual mix-up. their (/ðɛə/) and this (/ðɪs/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 71, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
their is recorded at frequency rank #56, classified as adet, pronounced /ðɛə/. this is at rank #15, tagged as adet, pronounced /ðɪs/.
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 71, this pair ranks #529,937 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of their vs this
Shared letters: hit. Private to "their": er. Private to "this": s.
"their" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC · "this" · 4 letters · shape CCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "their" and "this" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "their" or "this"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "their" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "this" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #529,937 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "their" and "this" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "this vs TTIP". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #529,937 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.