its

Meanings

1. 1
   det

   Belonging to or relating to a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

   The dog wagged its tail happily.

2. 2
   pron

   The one or ones belonging to it

   Every country protects its own borders, and this one protects its.

Equivalent to it + -s (possessive marker). From the earlier form it's (it + -'s), which is now considered nonstandard. Began to displace his as the possessive of the neuter pronoun in the Middle English period; had fully displaced it by the 1700s.

Topics