*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of their

Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *þaizǭ Proto-Norse ᚦᚨᛁᛉᛟ (þaiʀo /⁠þaizō⁠/) Old Norse þeirader. English their From Old Norse þeira, þeirra. Replaced native Old English heora.

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
contraction

Misspelling of they’re.

det

Belonging to, from, of, or relating to, them (plural). · Belonging to someone (one person, singular), or occasionally to something.

adv

Misspelling of there.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *þaizǭ Proto-Norse ᚦᚨᛁᛉᛟ (þaiʀo /⁠þaizō⁠/) Old Norse þeirader. English their From Old Norse þeira, þeirra. Replaced native Old English heora.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":der",
        "3": "non:þeira",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Germanic *þaizǭ\nProto-Norse ᚦᚨᛁᛉᛟ (þaiʀo /⁠þaizō⁠/)\nOld Norse þeirader.\nEnglish their\n[Appendix:Glossary#derived_terms|Derived]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"transcription\" : \"þaizō\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*þaizǭ\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Norse\", \"term\" : \"ᚦᚨᛁᛉᛟ\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"gmq-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old Norse\", \"term\" : \"þeira\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"non\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"their\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"their\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "þeira"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse þeira"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "ang",
        "2": "heora"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English heora"
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":der",
        "3": "non:þeira",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Germanic *þaizǭ\nProto-Norse ᚦᚨᛁᛉᛟ (þaiʀo /⁠þaizō⁠/)\nOld Norse þeirader.\nEnglish their"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*þaizǭ",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/þaizǭ"
    ],
    [
      "ᚦᚨᛁᛉᛟ",
      "ᚦᚨᛁᛉᛟ#Proto-Norse"
    ],
    [
      "þeira",
      "þeira#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "þeira",
      "þeira#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "þeirra",
      "þeirra#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "heora",
      "heora#Old_English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "contraction",
      "glosses": [
        "Misspelling of they’re."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "alt-of",
        "contraction",
        "misspelling"
      ],
      "recordId": "0380c325256c3fe46b566b7a8be63739d3687499d99b7abd5e343d16fc005ce5",
      "rawRecordSha256": "bd5f590a47917cd2afa76a3644b90bbd27cd38cb5072be9df79992fd53af3f11",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 16662
    },
    {
      "pos": "det",
      "glosses": [
        "Belonging to, from, of, or relating to, them (plural).",
        "Belonging to someone (one person, singular), or occasionally to something."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "36a6e75403765a4e67a5ff84ce37166993ff97fe3b5de246507be1677c7e30e8",
      "rawRecordSha256": "69b2ab2b7da9ca96fb216bf2bd79a60b009364f2225c45f79dccccabca2e2da3",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 16660
    },
    {
      "pos": "adv",
      "glosses": [
        "Misspelling of there."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "alt-of",
        "misspelling"
      ],
      "recordId": "3785fb8e44b4d550f95d440c07c23a312f825c69fdaab186a52c5722a09c046d",
      "rawRecordSha256": "3bf5d43167dfab9d721540859ee8746c9cf2ccc7e91a7ccd6c71478048534d68",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 16661
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for their →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-dGhlaXI