So I’m continuing on my grammar streak right now in my web tips. Last week I shared a tip about thats.

As mentioned in that tip, I have developed a checklist to ensure smooth and correct copy. Yes, I am pretty good at usage, style, and grammar issues, but that doesn’t mean I don’t sometimes slip up in the frenzy of writing for publications or clients.

My checklist helps me to ensure pesky errors don’t intrude. Of course, nothing is foolproof and I’m always learning something new.

This week I’ll mention three other items I like to check.

They are your, you’re; their, they’re; and, its, it’s.

Simply do a search for each of the above six words and then make sure each one is used properly.

Your: denotes possession: “Your sofa …”
vs.
You’re: you are 

Their: denotes possession: “Their bedroom set …”
vs.
They’re: they are

Its: denotes possession: “Its fabric is …”
vs.
It’s: it is

See the patterns?

You’ll often be able to catch these when your word processing editor marks them with a squiggly line. But the editor doesn’t always catch errors, so it’s helpful to have your own checklist.

Easy Web Tip 305: Yours, theirs, its are common words people often misuse when writing web copy.