A common confusion in writing is the distinction between the possessive adjectives
its and
your with the contractions
it’s and
you’re. The confusion arises because possessive nouns, acting as adjectives, use an apostrophe (
John’s keys, the
county’s tax base), but possessive adjectives do not (
his keys, the dog is
ours). The easiest way to keep the two straight is to ask yourself if the word you want to use is a substitute for two words; in that case, and only in that case, use the contractions.
Its vs. It’s
Its is a possessive adjective meaning “belonging to it”, while
it’s replaces “it is”. If you can’t substitute “it is” when using
it’s, take out the apostrophe. Consider these examples about a school that was just built.
| Original Sentence | Substituted | Does it work? |
| It's brand new. | It is brand new. | Yes, CORRECT |
| It's exterior is brick. | It is exterior is brick. | No, INCORRECT |
The substituted sentence about the exterior has two verbs, and just sounds wrong, because the usage is possessive (the exterior belongs to the school), so you know it should be written
without the apostrophe:
The school was just built. Its exterior is brick. CORRECT.
Your vs. You’re
Your and
you’re work the same way.
Your is the possessive form of you, and
you’re is the contracted form of “you are”. Only use
you’re when you could substitute the words “you are”. Consider these two examples.
| Original Sentence | Substituted | Does it work? |
| You're my best friend. | You are my best friend. | Yes, CORRECT |
| You're dress is green. | You are dress is green. | No, INCORRECT |
The green dress sentence is using
your in a possessive sense (the dress belongs to you), so the substitution doesn’t work. Thus, the correct way to say it is
without the apostrophe:
Your dress is green. CORRECT.
If you consistently use the substitution test when choosing between
its and
it’s or
your and
you’re, you will save yourself from these embarrassing errors.
