Your vs You're

A lot of people are confused about the difference between your and you're.

Your is a possessive  word and is used in contexts where one wishes to refer to a property or possession of the person being addressed. For example:

   You should brush your teeth.
   I will return your book soon.

In contrast, you're is an abbreviation  for you are. For example:

   You're good at that!           -->  You are good at that.
   Tell me if you're interested.  -->  Tell me if you are interested.

Here's how to tell which form to use:

Try "you are" in your sentence as a replacement.
If it works, use "you're", otherwise use "your".

Ross Williams (ross@ross.net)
23 January 2002

Revised 18 November 2002.