they mean vs they means

The correct phrase is 'they mean.' 'They means' is incorrect because 'means' is the third person singular form of the verb 'mean,' while 'they' is a plural pronoun.

Explained by Michele A.
Editor at TextRanch

Last updated: March 05, 2025 • 5968 views

Correct. 'They mean' is the correct form as 'they' is a plural pronoun and 'mean' is the appropriate verb form.

"they mean"

Use 'they mean' when referring to a plural subject performing an action or having a particular significance.

Examples:

They mean well.
They mean a lot to me.
What do they mean by that?
They mean business.
They mean the world to us.

Show examples from the web [+]

Okay, this time, they mean the same thing.
Then all we have to do is find out what they mean.
And by terminated, they mean killed.
It's not clear, but they mean to execute him tonight.
Don't know what they mean yet, but we will.
I guess I'm just curious, you know - what they mean.
Come on, Dad, they mean the mosque.
So this is what they mean by high-maintenance.
When they say George is missing, maybe they mean something else.
They were marking out the land, they mean to settle here.
But they mean the world to both of us.
Maybe they mean you're something special.
If they mean what I think they do, then there's no telling what terrible things Richard may be capable of.
Henry, you have many gifts but they mean little without impulse control, discipline and the tools to use them wisely.
It's not what they mean.
That source can tell you what they mean.
Those guys, they mean everything to him.
I know nothing of what they mean.
So whatever you know about what they mean would really help us.
We show you charts and statistics like they mean something.

'They means' is incorrect. 'Means' is the third person singular form of the verb 'mean,' which does not match with the plural pronoun 'they.'

"they means"

Show examples from the web [+]

They means so much to me.
It's not what they mean.
They mean business this time, John.
That source can tell you what they mean.
Those guys, they mean everything to him.
I know nothing of what they mean.
They mean, Jeff and Nathan.
So whatever you know about what they mean would really help us.
We show you charts and statistics like they mean something.
Use words for what they mean.
They mean a lot to me, Tessa.
They mean something with flowers, in a living room.
Now we know what they mean by "Advanced" Tactical Training.
And women, unlike men, never say what they mean.
I still have no idea exactly what they mean.
We can't protect anyone until we know why the anomalies appear and what they mean.
I think they mean to kill Arthur in the melee.
Compared to our spiritual remains, they mean nothing.
That's because they mean something to me.
I think they mean to kill the king.

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they mean vs they means

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