A Common Mistake in Written English: Its vs It’s

Its and It’s are two words that are often misspelled in English. It is important to know the difference between these two words.

These two words are confusing because they are homophones. This means they are pronounced the same, but they have different meanings. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Let’s take a look at each word.

Its = Ownership

its shows ownership of the subject it. 

Its almost always comes before the noun that it describes.

Examples:

• The laptop was too big for its case. (The case belongs to the laptop.)
  
  
• The dog buried its bone in the yard. (The bone belongs to the dog.)
  
  
• The tree lost its leaves. (The leaves belong to the tree.)
  
  
• The cat slept on its bed. (The bed belongs to the cat.)
  
  

It’s = Contraction for It + Is

The word it’s is a contraction of the words it and is. A contraction is when two or more words are combined and some letters are taken out. An apostrophe takes the place of the missing letters.

So, it’s literally means “it is”. 

Examples:

• It’s going to rain today.
  It is going to rain today.

• It’s about time!
  It is about time!

• It’s the right thing to do.
  It is the right thing to do. 

Many people think that “it’s” shows ownership because the word has an apostrophe. An apostrophe is often used to show ownership in English.

Examples:

• The boy’s dog needs a bath.
  (The boy owns the dog.)

• My teacher’s room is small.
  (The classroom belongs to my teacher.)

The apostrophe in “it’s” does not show ownership. The apostrophe is used to create a contraction.

Helpful Tips

With practice, you will soon be able to tell these two words apart. Here are a couple of tricks you can try to make sure you are using the correct word. 

1. Try replacing its or it’s in a sentence with the words it is. 
   If the sentence makes sense, then use the contraction it’s.
   If the sentence does not make sense, then use the word its.

Examples:

• ___ only Friday.
  “It is only Friday” makes sense. So, use the contraction. 
  It’s only Friday.

• My bicycle lost ___ tire.
  “My bicycle lost it is tire.” This does not make sense, so use the possessive its. 
  My bicycle lost its tire.
  
  

2. Try replacing its or it’s in a sentence with the words his.
   If the sentence makes sense, then use the word its.
   If the sentence does not make sense, then use the contraction it’s.

Examples:

• ____ my birthday today.
  “His my birthday today” does not make sense, so use the contraction.
  It’s my birthday today.
  
  
• Its foot is broken.
  “His foot is broken” makes sense, so use the possessive its. 
  Its foot is broken.

Practice

It is your turn. Complete each sentence below with its or it’s. Then, check your answers at the bottom of the page.

1. ________ your turn to wash the dishes.
   
   
2. Right now, ________ snowing outside.
   
   
3. The bird slept in ________ nest.
   
   
4. He said, “________ not a good idea to buy the car.”
   
   
5. The lamb turned ________ head to look at me.
   
   
6. I can see ________ eyes.
   
   
7. The dog showed ________ teeth at the cat.
   
   
8. ________ footprints are in the snow.
   
   
9. Look! ________ a beautiful rainbow.
   
   
10. ________ going to be a great day!
    
    

Answers:

1. It’s your turn to wash the dishes.
   
   
2. Right now, it’s snowing outside.
   
   
3. The bird slept in its nest.
   
   
4. He said, “It’s not a good idea to buy the car.”
   
   
5. The lamb turned its head to look at me.
   
   
6. I can see its eyes.
   
   
7. The dog showed its teeth at the cat.
   
   
8. Its footprints are in the snow.
   
   
9. Look! It’s a beautiful rainbow.
   
   
10. It's going to be a great day!

Homework

Look online or in books, and find 5 sentence that correctly use "it's" and 5 sentences that correctly use "its".