Ah, now you guys have encouraged me... Now I might actually post more than twice a month! =)
Grammar Tidbit #3
It's vs. Its
Grammar Tidbit #3
It's vs. Its
First, a few definitions...
Possessive: A word that shows possession or ownership.
Examples:
my iPod
their garage
his nose
her purse
sister's clothes
brother's baseball
parents' marriage
dog's tail
My heart was encouraged by their kind words.
Its is a possessive. It shows possession of something by a thing that is non-human.
Examples:
The dog wagged its tail. (The dog "owns" its tail)
The table has a scratch on its surface. (The table 'owns" its surface)
The flower had lost its fragrance. (The flower "owns" its fragrance)
Discipline has its own rewards. (Discipline "owns" rewards that come from being disciplined)
Now, this seems to break the rule of adding an " 's " to show possession, but like with most things, grammar breaks its own rules!
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Contraction: One word made from combining two words with an apostrophe taking the place of missing letters.
Examples:
Do not = don't
Cannot = can't
should not= shouldn't
does not = doesn't
would have = would've
It's is the contraction of "it" and "is." If you can substitute the words "it is" and the sentence still makes sense, then use it's.
Now I need to go help Todd clean out the garage... =)
Possessive: A word that shows possession or ownership.
Examples:
my iPod
their garage
his nose
her purse
sister's clothes
brother's baseball
parents' marriage
dog's tail
My heart was encouraged by their kind words.
Its is a possessive. It shows possession of something by a thing that is non-human.
Examples:
The dog wagged its tail. (The dog "owns" its tail)
The table has a scratch on its surface. (The table 'owns" its surface)
The flower had lost its fragrance. (The flower "owns" its fragrance)
Discipline has its own rewards. (Discipline "owns" rewards that come from being disciplined)
Now, this seems to break the rule of adding an " 's " to show possession, but like with most things, grammar breaks its own rules!
_____________________________________________________
Contraction: One word made from combining two words with an apostrophe taking the place of missing letters.
Examples:
Do not = don't
Cannot = can't
should not= shouldn't
does not = doesn't
would have = would've
It's is the contraction of "it" and "is." If you can substitute the words "it is" and the sentence still makes sense, then use it's.
Now I need to go help Todd clean out the garage... =)
6 comments:
For me, this is an easier one because you only use "it's" if you can say "it is." If you can't do that, you go with "its."
Since Christie requested this one, hopefully you've helped her out a bit. :)
I can't wait to see my favorite..."your" and "you're."
Anne, you said it MUCH more succinctly! Thanks! (hopefully my "long winded-ness" isn't completely wasted if some of my mom friends who are homeschooling can use it with their kids or even for their own "refresher"...) I just talked with Kaitlyn Poteete this morning at church and we talked about how she knew you through camp with the whole "My Little Poteete" nickname you gave her... I've visited your blog too and it's nice to have a fellow teacher (fellow 7th grade Block teacher even!)with my back on this if I'm not being clear... =)
I try to err on the side of not using contractions. In professional writing they are a no no so I have gotten in the habit of not using them...however in informal writing (eg. emails) I get very lazy and use them allot.
ps. you should post what you are passionate about, even if you are concerned what others will think of it. Writing/typing is an outlet for the soul.
Thanks Abbey (and Anne) this DID help, especially the remembering the "if you can say it is" thing :)
Abbey, it's good to know that there are other teachers out there desiring to make this world a smarter place. :)
Ah, litle Poteete...it's been a while. What great camp memories! (Aren't they all?)
I love the world of blogging. It's bringing so many of us together. It's good to know that I'm not the only one checking out other blogs. :)
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