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The It’s Its Dilemma
*This post originally appeared on my previous blog on January 28, 2015 I remember when I learned the difference between “it’s” and “its.” No, really, I remember. I was in first grade, and had used “it’s” instead of “its.” After an explanation from my teacher, I was amazed at how much an apostrophe could change the meaning of a word and sentence. Now, as I peruse social media, read text messages, edit copy, and go through my emails, I realize that not everyone was given, or paid attention to, an explanation of the difference between “it’s” and “its.” Well, here’s your chance. “It’s” is a easily recognizable…
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A Word on Contractions
*This post originally appeared on my previous blog on October 31, 2014 Don’t, won’t, can’t, shouldn’t, couldn’t, it’s (which will have a post of *its* own), and more. I believe in high school I was told it was better to use two words than one contraction. If I remember correctly, I did not use one contraction in any of my college application essays. This practice varied throughout my college career, and while now I prefer not to use contractions, I don’t completely avoid them. Many people, if not most, use contractions when they speak and write. But is this wrong? According to the AP Style Guide and the Chicago Manual of…