It is and It's and Its

[denysruak]

It is and It's and Its

I posted this poem on Poetfreak at the beginning of last year - thought it might be useful for those who struggle with these pesky words.
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It is sad that many writers of English do not understand when
it's (it is) correct to use the apostrophe in this combination (contraction).
As shown in the above sentence the apostrophe denotes
the omission of the 2nd "i" that has gone on vacation.

More examples of "it's" for us to share;
"It's going to rain today," said the duck to the frog.
"No, it's not," replied the frog, "it's only fog up there,
and when it's mixed with smoke, it's called smog."

However, when using the word "its" as an adjective,
the rule that normally applies is cast aside,
becoming just "its" without an apostrophe before the "s".
possessively taking nouns in its stride.

And here are examples of when "its" is used;
The duck, hiding its pride under its wing,
took its leave feeling a little bruised
while the frog croaked, doing its thing.

(C) Denys Ruak 5th Jan 2014
All rights reserved.

[Stella]

Thank you for posting this explanation Denys, for a long time "its and It's " used to befuddle me, especially when i wrongly used "it's "to show possession.
I hope this will be useful to everyone especially those poets whose first language is not English...

[stevenstirk]

It's a good explanation in its entirity. It's obvious to some, in its simplicity.
Yet to others it's confusing in its complication. . That's about it....really
isn't it.... Ha Ha