Tag: how to use an apostrophe

The difference between its and it’s

apostrophe-blackIts or it’s. What’s the difference?

Is this correct? Its my life. Nope. Why not? Because there is no verb in that sentence. It  should be: It’s my life.

It’s can mean two things: it is — or — it has. It all depends on the context. In our example sentence — It’s my life = It is my life. It is not: It has my life.

Let’s look at another sentence: It’s been a while since we last met. Now, here, it’s = it has.

Its is another dish altogether. And it has two different and distinct flavors.

1. Possessive pronoun

cartoon-robot-free-vector-illustration-800x566

image from: superawesomevectors.com

Imagine you have a robot (like the one above). In general, we consider a robot to be a thing. So we would say: it is washing the dishes.

Let’s look at some dialogue —

Your friend: Whose book is that?

You (pointing to the robot): Oh… That’s its.

Your friend: I didn’t know robots can read.

That is one way of using its. Here its acts as possessive pronoun. If the book was yours, you would say: Oh… That’s mine. (Mine is another possessive pronoun, by the way.)

You are still reading this post. That means you are determined to understand it’s vs its. A positive sign. We have one more use of its and then we’re done. Promise.

2. Possessive adjective

A friend asks you: Whose book is that?

You (pointing to the robot): Oh… That’s its book.

Here its acts as a possessive adjective. It gives us more information about the book. If it is your book, you would say: Oh… That’s my book.

Do you get it?

Are you a bit confused? I hope not. Don’t worry about all the grammatical jargon (possessive pronoun, possessive adjective). Just think about when to use it’s and its.

Keep in mind that its can be used either as a pronoun (a word that replaces a noun) or as an adjective (a word that describes a noun).

Phew! Done.

Next time someone emails you: Its okay. You know what is not okay!

For more on grammar, read these posts on articles and prepositions. 

When do I use an apostrophe?

apostrophe

This message is from my local gym. What caught my eye was the unnecessary apostrophe in ‘Saturdays’.

Apostrophes are terrible easy to use. And yet, there are often misused. As in most things in life, you just have to be clear as to how to use them. Let’s find out.

3 ways to use an apostrophe

1. To show possession 

girl’s (singular)     girls’ (plural)

2. After time expressions

One week’s time

Two weeks’ time (note that the apostrophe in this case comes after the ‘s’)

3. For informal speech 

do not   becomes  don’t 

I am becomes I’m 

you are becomes you’re 

Pay attention when you see: it’s

It’s can be ‘it is’ or ‘it has’. It depends on the context.

Look at these two examples:

a. It’s raining! (It is)

b. It’s been nice speaking with you. (It has)

And that’s all

If you wish to write anything in its plural form, such as protein shakes, push-ups, and Saturdays, there is no need to add an apostrophe. Don’t do it.

And yes, there are exceptions. We use apostrophes when we talk of minding your P’s and Q’s. But, I think you knew that already…

Not sure about its vs. it’s?