Knowing when to use its vs it’s can be confusing, even for native English speakers.
Perhaps the main confusion comes from the fact that possessives often take an apostrophe, and the possessive pronoun ‘its’ is one of the few exceptions.
Simply put, the difference between its and it’s is:
It's is a contraction of it is or it has. Its is possessive, referring to something belonging to 'it'.
However, there’s a lot more to know about these commonly confused words. Keep reading to dig into the details and see some examples showing how to use its and it’s correctly.
The difference between its vs it’s
It’s is a contraction
It’s is a contraction (abbreviated form) of it is or it has.
You should only use it’s when it is short for it is or it has. If you can’t replace it’s with one of these, then don’t use it.
Let’s look at some example sentences using it’s:
- It’s a lovely day today. (it is)
- It’s been a busy weekend for me. (it has)
- This book is confusing. I don’t understand what it’s about. (it is)
- We’re glad to see it’s finally stopped raining. (it has)
- I don’t know whether it’s a good idea or not. (it is)
- I can’t use my printer right now, I think it’s broken. (it is or has)
If in doubt about whether to use its or it’s in a sentence, try writing it is or it has instead. If it makes sense, keep it that way. If not, you should use its instead.
You can learn more about what contractions are and how to use them in our separate guide.
Its is possessive
Its is a possessive pronoun, or sometimes a possessive adjective. This means you can use it in the same way as his or her in a sentence.
Its describes something belonging to whatever ‘it’ is.
Here are some example sentences using its:
- This bird has hurt its wing.
- The government should be open about its policies.
- A car came speeding down the street and I had to run to get out of its way.
- I should throw this book away. Its pages are all torn.
- Sounds like your company doesn’t care about its employees.
- Home fitness equipment seems to have lost its appeal since the pandemic ended.
- Look at that poor lion, all on its own in the zoo enclosure.
On its own or it’s own?
Note the last example above: if you’re wondering whether to say ‘its own’ or ‘it’s own’, the first option is correct. The phrase ‘on one’s own’ means ‘by oneself’ or ‘without help’, and it requires the possessive form its. Here are some examples:
- I saw that last slice of pizza all on its own and I just had to buy it.
- I think that dog enjoys being on its own.
- Look at that clever monkey; it peeled a banana all on its own!
- I’d love a business that makes money on its own.
You can remember this by constructing the sentence with other possessive pronouns such as ‘on your own’ or ‘on her own’ and seeing if it still makes sense.
Its’ is never correct
In case you’re wondering whether its’ is a word, the answer is no. There is no scenario in English when you would need to add an apostrophe to the possessive pronoun its. Use a free proofreading tool like Grammarly to help you pick up on errors like this whenever you write.
And that’s all there really is to know about when to use its vs it’s. You might find it helpful to learn about other commonly confused words like your and you’re or their, they’re and there. Or, check out some other examples below to keep improving your English.
