Difference Between Its and It’s

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Contraction is the mixing of two words into a single word with the help of an apostrophe (‘) such as the words ‘it is’ are combined with an apostrophe and contracted as ‘it’s’. ‘It’s’ is often confused with ‘its’ as they are pronounced similar but they appear differently as the latter does not have an apostrophe. Moreover, they differ in their meanings too, as in ‘its‘ represents ownership, whereas ‘it’s‘ is a short form of it is or it has.

So, using them incorrectly in our sentences may change its meaning. Let’s understand their difference with the help of examples below:

It’s a sunny day in New York. The Central Park here is known for its sunbath.
It’s my cat’s and its kitten’s home.
It’s time for the party and its main theme is retro.

In these sentences, we’ve used it’s, as a contraction of it is to make the sentence easier and shorter, whereas its is used to show belongingness or possession.

Comparison Chart

Basis for Comparison	Its	It’s
Meaning	Its is a possessive adjective, which represents belongingness to something that is already mentioned or easily relatable.	It’s is a short form of the expression ‘it is’ or ‘it has’.
What is it?	Determiner	Contraction
Examples	The cat is sitting on its mat.	It’s not my car.
	The specialty of Agra is its Taj Mahal.	It’s been an year since we met.
	Computer and its parts are very costly.	It’s my life.

Definition of Its

The word ‘its’ is a possessive form of the word ‘it’, that means belongingness to some place, animal, child or any non-living object, which is previously mentioned or implied. It is always followed by a noun to which it relates.

Examples:

The dog has its own house.
Jaipur is famous for its forts.
The entity distributed its profits in the form of the dividend to the shareholders.
Bikes and its accessory prices have gone up by 20% this year.
The behaviour of a child depends on its upbringing.

Definition of It’s

The word ‘it’s’ is a contraction for ‘it is’ or sometimes ‘it has’, which is used to make the sentence simple and easy to read and understand. While ‘it’ is a pronoun used for indicating non-living things, animals, places etc. whereas ‘is’ and ‘has’ are helping/auxiliary verb.

Examples:

It’s not necessary.
It’s been a great day.
It’s your mistake, do correct it.
It’s a long story.
It’s an old saying that ‘Beggars cannot be choosers’.

Key Difference Between Its and It’s

The points stated below are noteworthy so far as the difference between its and it’s is concerned:

Its is a possessive version of the pronoun ‘it’, that is used to show belongingness or ownership to something, which is either mentioned earlier or easy to relate. It’s is a commonly spoken form of the expression ‘it is’ or ‘it has’.
While its is nothing but an attributive adjective, it’s is a contraction.
Example: It’s getting late.
I’ve lost my car keys, I need to buy its new keys.

Examples

Its

The TV has its remote.
You will get its accessories.
The dog is known for its loyalty.

It’s

It’s all about priorities.
It’s going to be very difficult.
It’s your wish to meet Nainee.

How to remember the difference

An easy way to memorize their difference between its and it’s is that when you can expand it, to ‘it is’ or ‘it has’ use it’s, otherwise use its in your sentence.