GRAMMAR | Homonyms - Word Pairs - Apostrophe - Its/It's - Whose/Who's - Your/You're

ITS and IT'S

One of the most confusing homonyms in English is the pair ITS and IT'S.  Test your knowledge! (Reload the page for a new question.)

IT'S - with the apostrophe

IT'S - This is a contraction for "it is" (or, more rarely, "it has"). Examples:

• It's better to give than to receive.

  = It IS better

• You never know what you've got till it's gone.

  = till it IS gone.

• It's long been known that two wrongs don't make a right.

  = It HAS long been known

ITS - without the apostrophe

ITS - This is the possessive form of its, meaning "belonging to it." Examples:

• Don't judge a book by its cover.

  (its cover = the cover belonging to it, the book)

• Every rose has its thorn.

  (its thorn = the thorn belonging to it, the rose)

• A lazy sheep thinks its wool is heavy.

  (its wool = the wool belonging to it, the sheep)