Tom's thing: 's, its or it's, and whose

Name + 's

For a name or a noun, add 's.

• Tom's car (the car belongs to Tom)
• Ana's phone (the phone belongs to Ana)
• my mother's name (the name of my mother)
• the man's hat (the hat belongs to the man)

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1. 1Ana
2. 2Ana's dog
3. 3Ana's car

The dog and the car belong to Ana: Ana's dog, Ana's car.

English almost never says the car of Tom. With people, use 's: Is this Tom's car?

Plural nouns: s'

If the noun is plural and ends in s, add only the apostrophe.

The boy's room belongs to one boy. The boys' room belongs to two or more boys. Plurals with no s take 's: the children's room, the men's names.

Its or it's?

These two sound the same. They mean different things.

The test: can you say it is? Then write it's: It's late = It is late. If not, write its: its food is not it is food.

The same trap: your (your bag) and you're (you're late = you are late), their (their house) and they're (they're here = they are here).

Whose?

To ask about the owner, use whose: Whose bag is this? (Who is the owner of this bag?) It's Tom's. (It is Tom's bag.)

Common mistakes