there

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English ther, also thar, thare,^[2][3] inherited from Old English þǣr, also þēr,^[4][2][5] from Proto-Germanic *þar,^[6][7][8] formed from the demonstrative base *þa- of that, the and then and a suffix -r that forms adverbs of place, as in here and where.^[9][10][7] Its cognates are Old Frisian thēr, Old Saxon thār, Middle Dutch daer, Dutch daar, Old High German dār, German da, Old Norse þar and Gothic 𐌸𐌰𐍂 (þar).^[3][8][10] Etymonline traces it to Proto-Indo-European *tar- (“there”), from the root *to- with an adverbial suffix,^[8] and Klein compares a Sanskrit word for "then".^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

In or at that place: before 800, in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, according to Barnhart.^[3] In Old English it could also mean "so far as, provided that, in that respect".^[8]

Semantic evolution

The use of there to introduce a sentence whose subject follows the verb, as in there was a knock at the door, also goes back to Old English.^[8][11] The sense "in that case, consequently" died out in the 15th century.^[11] The Middle English forms ther and thare are recorded probably before 1200, in Layamon.^[3] Calling to someone, as in you there, is found before 1393, in Gower, according to the OED, and in the 1580s according to Etymonline.^[11][8] The interjection dates from the 1530s, and there, there as a word of comfort from 1872.^[8] The noun, "that place", is recorded from 1588.^[2] Emphatic that there is recorded from 1741,^[11][8] and Merriam-Webster calls that there fellow substandard.^[2] Colloquial all there, having one's wits, dates from 1864, and to have been there, to know something from experience, from 1877.^[8]

Timeline

• before 800 – adverb, in or at that place.^[3]
• Old English – introducing a sentence with the subject after the verb (there is).^[11][8]
• before 1393 – in addressing someone (you there).^[11] Etymonline dates this use to the 1580s.^[8]
• 1530s – interjection, calling attention or expressing certainty or comfort.^[8]
• 1588 – noun, that place.^[2]
• 1741 – emphatic that there.^[11] Etymonline dates it to 1742.^[8]
• 1864 – all there, having one's wits.^[8]
• 1872 – there, there, as consolation.^[8]

Meanings

Adverb

1. In or at that place: Leave the parcel there.^[12][13][2]
2. To or towards that place: We drove there in an hour.^[12]
3. At that stage or point: Let's stop there for today.^[12][11]
4. In that matter or respect: You have a point there.^[12][13]

Pronoun

1. Used to introduce a sentence or clause in which the verb comes before its subject: There are three letters for you.^[13][2]

Noun

1. That place or point: From there it is a short walk.^[12][2]

Adjective

1. (nonstandard) Used for emphasis after that or those: that there car.^[12][2]

Interjection

1. Used to express relief, satisfaction, sympathy or annoyance: There, it's done. or there, there.^[12][8]

Word family

• therefrom
• thereinto
• thereunto
• therewith
• out-there
• here and there
• then and there

Related words

• here
• where
• then
• that
• the
• their
• they're

Usage notes

In sentences such as there is and there are, the verb agrees in number with the subject that follows it.^[12][14] Dictionary.com notes that there is easily confused with their and they're.^[14]

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
3. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
4. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
5. ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
6. ^ Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill
7. ^ a b Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
9. ^ Ayto, John (2005), Word Origins: The Secret Histories of English Words from A to Z, 2nd ed., London: A & C Black
10. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
11. ^ a b c d e f g h Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
12. ^ a b c d e f g h The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
13. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
14. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House