Question 1

Can it's mean "it has" as well as "it is"?

Accepted Answer

Yes, "it's" has two meanings: "it is" and "it has." You can tell the difference by looking at what comes next. When "it's" means "it is," it is usually followed by an adjective, a noun, or an -ing form: "It's cold," "It's a problem," "It's raining." When "it's" means "it has," it is usually followed by "been" or a past participle: "It's been a long day" (it has been), "It's taken three hours" (it has taken), "It's gone wrong" (it has gone). Recognising this pattern helps you understand spoken English, where the two contractions sound identical.

Question 2

Why is the possessive its an exception to the apostrophe rule?

Accepted Answer

Normally, we add an apostrophe to show possession: "the girl's book," "the dog's bone." So it seems logical that "it" should become "it's" for possession — but it does not. The reason is that "its" is a pronoun, and possessive pronouns in English never use apostrophes: his, hers, ours, yours, theirs, its. They already have a built-in possessive form. The apostrophe in "it's" is reserved entirely for contractions (it is, it has). This rule exists precisely to avoid confusion between the two meanings, even though the pattern feels inconsistent with nouns.

Question 3

What are the most common mistakes with its and it's?

Accepted Answer

The most frequent error is writing "it's" when you mean possession: "The cat chased it's tail" should be "its tail." This happens because learners apply the noun possession rule (girl's book) to pronouns. The second common mistake is forgetting that "it's" can mean "it has," leading to confusion in present perfect sentences like "It's been ages since we met." A third mistake is dropping the apostrophe entirely and writing "its" for both meanings. In exams, read the full sentence and apply the replacement test — swap in "it is" to check whether you need the contraction or the possessive form.

Its vs It's — Intermediate Exercises

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