Look at these sentences can you pick out the incorrect ones?
- Its raining outside.
- It’s raining outside.
- Your car is being towed.
- You’re car is being towed.
Both 1 and 4 are incorrect. (2 and 3 are correct.)
The most common grammatical error I see on presentations is between it’s and its. The second most common error I see is between your and you’re. The difference between its and it’s is simple. It’s (with the apostrophe) = It is. If you use it’s, be sure that you can replace it’s with it is. So sentence 2 is correct because you can substitute It’s with It is. Sentence 1 is incorrect. The confusion is that we often add an apostrophe for other words which have a similar meaning to its. For example, Jenny’s car is outside. The apostrophe indicates that the car belongs to Jenny. It is possessive. However, the possessive form of it = its (without the apostrophe). If you remember this it will help you not to confuse the two terms.
The difference between your and you’re is also pretty straightforward. You’re (with the apostrophe) = You are. So sentence 4 is incorrect since if you replace you’re with you are, the sentence is nonsensical – You are car is being towed. The word your indicates possession. Your mother, your father, your job, your car, your house, your apple, your computer, or your apple computer. You’re = You are.
You’re done reading this post. It’s important to remember that it’s easy to confuse the words ‘its’ and ‘it’s.’ I hope your day is filled with joy.