yours

/jɔː(ɹ)z/

//jɔː(ɹ)z// pron

"yours" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“yours” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #1,849 in English word frequency and used as a pronoun.

#1,849
frequency rank, English
5
letters
7
tracked misspellings
17
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - That or those belonging to you; the possessive second-person singular pronoun used without a following noun.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

yours vs yrs
60% similar
yours vs Yuri
40% similar
yours vs yous
80% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for yours
PropertyValue
Headwordyours
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechPronoun
IPA/jɔː(ɹ)z/
Letters5
Frequency rank#1,849
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs17
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “yours” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). yours lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for yours is 5 letters long, classified as a pronoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /jɔː(ɹ)z/. Corpus data places it at rank #1,849 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for yours, with forms such as "oyurs", "yorus", and "yourrs". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 17 confusable-pair relationships, "yrs", "Yuri", "yous", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English youres, ȝoures, attested since the 1300s. Equivalent to your + -s (compare -'s); formed by analogy to his. Displaced yourn in standard speech. The correct English form is yours, spelled Y-O-U-R-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    That or those belonging to you; the possessive second-person singular pronoun used without a following noun.
  2. 2
    Your house or home.
  3. 3
    Written at the end of a letter, before the signature.

Etymology

From Middle English youres, ȝoures, attested since the 1300s. Equivalent to your + -s (compare -'s); formed by analogy to his. Displaced yourn in standard speech.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: oyurs,yorus,yourrs,yourss,yousr,yuors,yyours

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of yours - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

oyurs2yorus2yourrs1yourss1yousr2yuors2yyours1
Edit distance from "yours"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "yours"?
"yours" is spelled Y-O-U-R-S. The IPA pronunciation is /jɔː(ɹ)z/.
What does "yours" mean?
As a pronoun, "yours" means: That or those belonging to you; the possessive second-person singular pronoun used without a following noun.
What words are commonly confused with "yours"?
"yours" is commonly confused with "yrs", "Yuri", "yous". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "yours"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "yours" is /jɔː(ɹ)z/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "yours"?
From Middle English youres, ȝoures, attested since the 1300s. Equivalent to your + -s (compare -'s); formed by analogy to his. Displaced yourn in standard speech. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “yours”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is Y-O-U-R-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /jɔː(ɹ)z/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “yrs” - see the side-by-side comparison. yours vs yrs
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list