16Hit1600
Standard English ConventionsEasyPossessive determiner vs. contraction (its/it's)

Standard English Conventions practice question

The bombardier beetle has an unusual way of escaping predators. When the insect is threatened, two chemicals stored in separate chambers of its body mix together and react. The beetle then sprays the boiling-hot solution from the tip of ____ abdomen.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

  1. A. it's
  2. B. itsCorrect
  3. C. its'
  4. D. their

Answer: B. its

A possessive determiner is needed to show that the abdomen belongs to the singular beetle; "its" is the correct possessive form and takes no apostrophe. (A) is the contraction of "it is," the classic apostrophe confusion ("the tip of it is abdomen" is not a sentence). (C) is not a word in Standard English—no possessive pronoun is formed with an apostrophe after -s. (D) is plural and does not agree in number with the singular antecedent "beetle."

Why the other answers are wrong

A. it's
"It's" means "it is" — read it back: "the tip of it is abdomen." You need the possessive "its," which takes no apostrophe.
C. its'
"Its'" isn't a word in Standard English; no possessive pronoun is formed by adding an apostrophe after -s.
D. their
"Their" is plural, but the abdomen belongs to one beetle, so the singular "its" is needed.

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