Oct 2, 2017
it’s vs its
I'm going to write a bit about grammar and usage. Because I feel strongly about them and for some reason have set aside significant space in my brain for remembering the rules. For it's vs its, the rule is simple but often not followed. If it could be replaced with “it is” or “it has” then you’re using a contraction, and it’s “it’s.” If it can’t, you’re using the possessive of the pronoun “it” and you use “its” (no apostrophe). What trips people up is that we frequently use an apostrophe when we’re using a possessive, e.g. “Steve’s dog,” or “that dog’s hair is all over my sweater.” “Its hair is all over my sweater” is correct. “It’s hair is all over my sweater” is not.