If your/you're & there,their,& they're sound the same when we talk then..

9 Comments

....why does it matter if we spell them out when writing?

I mean think about it, when someone is speaking to you, although they all sound the same, just given the context of what the person is saying, you can easily and rather automatically decipher what they are saying, so why do we even need to spell them differently?

For example:
If someone writes "there going to the movies" rather than the correct "They're going to the movies" I instantly hear "they are", just as i would if they spoke it to me.

When you speak it there is no difference in how it's pronounced, so when I read it, there is also no difference in how it's pronounced in my head. So why even do it?

Help us keep this site organized and clean. Thanks!
[ Report Post ]
Comments ( 9 )
  • Boojum
    4 years ago

    In communication, the onus is on the author or speaker to convey their meaning clearly to the reader or listener. Having conventions in spelling makes it easier for the reader to process the information.

    You've probably come across the memes which present text like the following and say only 20% of people (or some other random figure) can understand it:

    "A vheclie epxledod at a plocie cehckipont near the UN haduqertares in Bagahdd on Mnoday kilinlg the bmober and an Irqai polcie offceir."

    In fact, most fluent readers of English can decode that without many problems, but it's not as easy as reading: "A vehicle exploded at a police checkpoint near the UN headquarters in Baghdad on Monday killing the bomber and an Iraqi police officer."

    Using a language in the standard form is also a form of social signalling, and how you use language conveys its own messages about you. To some people, I probably come across as someone with a stick up his arse, while someone who uses SMS abbreviations or confuses their, there, and they're makes a somewhat different impression.

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    3
    3
      -
    • Anonymous Post Author
      4 years ago

      thanks :)

      Comment Hidden ( show )
      0
      0
  • brutus
    4 years ago

    English is such a weird language.

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    2
    2
  • RoseIsabella
    4 years ago

    I have less respect for people who don't respect my language.

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    0
    0
      -
    • Anonymous Post Author
      4 years ago

      word, ya I'm just curious why it's done this way...

      Comment Hidden ( show )
      0
      0
        -
      • Boojum
        4 years ago

        If you're asking why words with different meanings are pronounced the same but spelled differently, that's a matter of etymology (the study of the history of words).

        English started to develop around 500 AD and it borrowed words from many languages over the following centuries. Spelling was standardised about two hundred and fifty years ago, but the pronunciation of words has constantly evolved.

        I haven't looked into it, but I suspect that although "their", "there" and "they're" are all pronounced the same in modern English, those words probably sounded very different at some point in the past.

        Comment Hidden ( show )
        0
        0
          -
        • Anonymous Post Author
          4 years ago

          Ya Im certain i'll get around to researching the etymology of them sometime soon. I just wanted to hear IIN thoughts on it first. It is rather strange, wouldn't you say?

          I like to use the Proper versions,because, well, I've grown up to see it as correct. But I'm human, and sometimes (as I'm sure this comment demonstrates) make mistakes. And I just find it funny the amount of outrange you'll often get for accidentally typing "your" instead of "you're" for example. The amount of people who feel the need to point it out and so on, when in all reality, no one needs a que when you speak these words to understand the difference, nor is it even remotely challenging to understand the meaning when you are reading it.

          I mean, arguably it does add more nuance to writing in a way, But at the same time if we made all there,their, they're just there , or both your and you're just your, I couldn't imagine anyone having more trouble reading anything.
          After all, if languages purpose is to communicate, and doing it that way wouldn't reduce any ability to communicate ,then why is it that way to begin with? Then again, I suppose as I think you said earlier, People learning the language might find it helpful. I guess you would then have words with a rainbow of definitions, so perhaps it is best to distinctly separate them.

          It's not so much I don't like them, it's more so I'm interested in why we put such effort to differentiate them in the first place when we don't in our speech , which you did a great job of helping answer that, I shall continue my research, thank you for taking the time to respond so much!

          Might I add, They're Homophones obviously, and I suppose i would have to agree that abolishing all homophones and just making a single spelling interchangeable certainly wouldn't be good. I do think some would get rather confusing, especially with a life time of seeing it a certain way, such as, "over here" and "over hear" or "i'd like to meet you" and "I'd like to meat you" I suppose because those words have a deeper meaning they're not very interchangeable, and although the "your's" and the "there's" appear to be much more interchangeable with little if no effect to ones quickness to understand, maybe that does make a case for keeping the separate.

          Comment Hidden ( show )
          0
          0
            -
          • Boojum
            4 years ago

            I can get exasperated when people don't communicate their thoughts clearly, especially when it's obvious they just couldn't be bothered to put any time and effort into what they've written, and they haven't considered their readers. But I don't criticise people for their spelling or punctuation alone, and I never get outraged about such mistakes. English is a pretty screwed up language in some ways, there are many people who don't speak it as their first language, and dyslexia is pretty common.

            It's impossible for me to not make assumptions based on how people write, but I know they're only that and quite possibly wrong. It seems to me that people who call others out for mistakes they've made with spelling, grammar or punctuation are basically pretty sad, since it suggests they have a need to one-up others as a way to feel better about themselves.

            Comment Hidden ( show )
            0
            0
  • Grunewald
    4 years ago

    I wonder if the pronunciations ever were distinct, once upon a time...

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    0
    0