In grammar, homophones are words that share the same pronunciation yet spell and mean two different things. This makes โthrewโ and โthroughโ classic examples of homophones.
Homophones are a common cause of confusion in the English language. You have two words that belong to two parts of speech or are derived from different words, and you unknowingly use them interchangeably in a sentence.
Key Takeaways
- โThrewโ is the past tense of the verb โthrow,โ indicating tossing or hurling something.
- โThroughโ is a preposition, adverb, or adjective denoting movement or passage from one point to another or the completion process.
- These two words are homophones with different meanings and grammatical functions; โthrewโ is a verb, while โthroughโ can be a preposition, adverb, or adjective.
Threw vs Through
โThrewโ is the past tense of the verb โthrowโ which means to propel something with force, while โthroughโ is a preposition that means moving in one side and out of the other side of an object or an area. Example: โHe threw the ballโ vs. โHe walked through the door.โ

Examples: 1) Lily โthrewโ a brick on Adamโs face that he got unconscious. 2) People were going โthroughโ no entry.
Threw and through are pronounced the same, yet their meaning is as different as chalk and cheese.
Comparison Table
Feature | โThrewโ | โThroughโ |
---|---|---|
Part of Speech | Verb (past tense) | Preposition and adverb |
Meaning | Past tense of โthrow,โ meaning to propel something through the air with force. | Indicates movement from one side or end of an opening, space, or location to the other. |
Usage | Describes an action of throwing something in the past. | Indicates passage, movement, or completion from one side to the other. |
Examples | โHe threw the ball to his friend.โ | โThey walked through the forest.โ |
Pronunciation | Rhymes with โblue.โ | Rhymes with โthrew.โ |
Synonyms | Tossed, hurled, cast. | Across, over, from one side to another. |
Antonyms | Caught, received. | Stopped, halted, stationary. |
Related Forms | Throw (present tense), throwing (present participle), thrown (past participle). | N/A |
Common Mistakes | Using โthroughโ when referring to an action of throwing. | Using โthrewโ when indicating passage or movement. |
Sentence Structure | โShe threw the keys to him.โ | โThe path leads through the mountains.โ |
Idiomatic Usage | โThrew in the towelโ means giving up or surrendering. | โThrough thick and thinโ means in good times and bad times. |
When to Use Threw?
Threw is a verb that acts as the past tense of throw. When youโre talking about propelling something in the air by a great amount of force, youโre talking about throwing it.
Now when you report the same statement in the past, the correct verb to use is โthrew.โ
Examples:
- She threw the ball at him
- The monkey threw back his hat.
All these example statements are reported in the past. Threw could also mean to dislodge, make pottery, cast a dice, or lose deliberately.
Itโs believed that the word throw, the present tense of the verb threw, was coined from the word throwen โ a middle English word that meant to twist, hurl, or wring.
Then, the past tense โthrewโ would be derived from the past tense of the same word, thrawan.

When to Use Through?
Through is an adverb that also doubles as a preposition and adjective. The word indicates entering from one side and exiting from the other.
So when something enters into something and then exits it from the other side, you can say itโs gone through.
Through can also be used to suggest a passage. Itโs also used to indicate task completion or that something has moved from one point to another; otherwise, โthroughโ means something is running nonstop.
As an adjective, โthroughโ means the item or tool used or the cause of something.
Again, the word through is believed to have evolved from a Middle English word, thruhg or thurg, which came from an ancient English word thurh. Both words bear the same meaning as through.
Examples in a sentence:
1) The boy threw the ball at her sister.
Threw is used in this sentence to mean hurl.
2) Kevin walked through the shop to their backyard, where he found his father attending to their flock.
ย โThroughโ is used in this sense to refer to a passage. It means that Kevin entered the shop from the front and left it using an exit door at the back.
ย 3) If you wouldnโt be through with your work when the bell rings, you wonโt go out for a short break.
Here, through is used to mean finish or complete. Whatโs being implied is that if the subject doesnโt complete the assigned work by any chance, they wonโt be going out for the short break.
4) Thought you were through with school.
In this sentence, โthroughโ is used to mean finish. The person making the statement wonders why the subject hasnโt finished school yet.
5) She learned about the job through Facebook.
Here, though is used to mean โas a result of.โ

Main Differences Between Threw and Through
- Meaning:
- Threw: โThrewโ is the past tense of the verb โthrow,โ which means to propel something through the air with force, usually by hand.
- Example: โHe threw the ball to his friend.โ
- Through: โThroughโ is a preposition and an adverb that indicates movement from one side or end of an opening, space, or location to the other.
- Example: โThey walked through the forest.โ
- Threw: โThrewโ is the past tense of the verb โthrow,โ which means to propel something through the air with force, usually by hand.
- Part of Speech:
- Threw: Verb (past tense).
- Through: Preposition and adverb.
- Usage:
- Threw: Used when describing an action of throwing something in the past.
- Through: Used to indicate movement from one side to the other, often denoting passage or completion.
- Examples:
- Threw: โHe threw the frisbee across the yard.โ
- Through: โThey walked through the tunnel to reach the other side.โ
- Pronunciation:
- Threw: rhymes with โblue.โ
- Through: rhymes with โthrew.โ
Examples:
- The despicable boy threw a mug at her mother before escaping through the back door.
- He threw the party through his elder brother.
These two examples show that the two words have meanings that differ depending on the message being passed across.
In the first sentence, โthrewโ means โpropel.โ The mug was propelled towards the mother. In the same sentence, through is used to mean โfrom.โ
In the second case, however, โthrewโ is used idiomatically to mean โorganizeโ or โto hold,โ while through is used to mean โby way of.โ
Idiomatic Use of Threw
Threw can be used idiomatically to mean different things. For instance:
1) Threw a monkey wrench, which means to sabotage something.
Everything went according to plan until the weather threw a monkey wrench into the wedding plan.
2) Threw cold water on, which means discourage.
Her motherโs remarks threw cold water into her ambitions.
3) Threw oneself at, which means trying hard to win someoneโs affection.
Itโs well-known that the bride threw herself at the best man.
4) Threw oneself into, which means to try something vigorously.
She threw herself into the project and was determined to make it successful.
Idiomatic Use of Through
โThroughโ also boasts a series of everyday use. They include:
1) through and through, which means complete.
Sheโs a staunch Manchester United fan, through and through.
2) Go through with something, which means to continue or see something to completion.
She was criticized, but that didnโt stop her from going through with the proposition.
3) Go through the rood, which means to get angry.
She came home late, and her dad went through the roof.


Emma Smith holds an MA degree in English from Irvine Valley College. She has been a Journalist since 2002, writing articles on the English language, Sports, and Law. Read more about me on her bio page.