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Post Info TOPIC: grammar question


Dooney & Bourke

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grammar question
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anyone remember the rule for it's and its?  is the apostrophe for possession or the contraction?



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Coach

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quote:

Originally posted by: e_doli

"anyone remember the rule for it's and its?  is the apostrophe for possession or the contraction?"

The apostrophe is only used when you are trying to say "it is".

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Hermes

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ditto AJ.


A good way to remember it is that its is used the same way as his or her -- so no apostrophe.


i.e.


The dog has its ball.  ...same as... The girl has her ball.


I grammar. One of my new year's resolutions is to actually use good grammar when I'm typing. I've been getting lazy



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Dooney & Bourke

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thanks.


there are some rule i just cannot remember.  my friend has the coolest book that is about this type of common mistake (its and it's, affect and effect) and i secretly plot to rob it from her as i cannot find my own copy anywhere.



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Dooney & Bourke

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Another way to remember this is that the apostrophe is replacing a letter in "it's" - just like don't, won't, haven't, you're (you are), etc.  When you get stumped, think about what you are trying to write.  If you are saying in effect, "it is" then put in the apostrophe.  In any other case (i.e. possession), you'd just write "its".  HTH.

-- Edited by DC Shopper at 11:46, 2004-12-15

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Hermes

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quote:

Originally posted by: e_doli

"thanks. there are some rule i just cannot remember.  my friend has the coolest book that is about this type of common mistake (its and it's, affect and effect) and i secretly plot to rob it from her as i cannot find my own copy anywhere."

Is it Woe Is I? Or Lapsing Into a Comma? I love those books *nerd alert*

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"We live in an age where unnecessary things are our only necessities." --Oscar Wilde


Dooney & Bourke

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i can't remember the title, but i don't think it was anything that clever.  i'll have to check those two out though.

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