It’s or its? Simple steps to help you remember
IT’S or ITS? These straightforward tips will help you remember the difference between these two commonly confused words.
Knowing whether to write it’s or its can trip you up.
In a nutshell, it’s is always a contraction of it is or it has, while its describes something that belongs to ‘it’.
It’s
The apostrophe reminds you that it’s is a contraction of it is or it has. If you can replace the word with ‘it is’ or ‘it has’ use it’s.
Example:
It’s easy when you remember this rule (it is).
It’s been a busy day (it has).
Its
Usually followed by a noun, its describes something that belongs to ‘it’:
Example:
The dog chased its tail.
We get confused because we know apostrophes are used to indicate possession – that something belongs to someone or something. But this rule doesn’t apply to pronouns – its, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs.
Get more tips in The Little Book of Confusables
No more confusing words!
The Little Book of Confusables is jam-packed with simple, memorable, fun spelling tips for 600 commonly confused words – from ACCEPT + EXCEPT to YOUNG + YOUTHFUL.