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10 個導致退稿的常見寫作錯誤之五
【學術專欄】
10 Common Writing Errors That Can Spell “Rejection” for Your Manuscript: Error 5
10 個導致退稿的常見寫作錯誤之五
Error 5: Don’t Confuse “It’s” With “Its”
“If a person’s arteries are prematurely narrowed, its even more likely that cocaine use will trigger a heart attack.”
Even native English speakers commonly make this error. The confusion arises because in English, an apostrophe with an “s” is normally used to show possession. With pronouns, however, the apostrophe is used to create pronoun/verb contractions. “It’s” means “it is.” Without the apostrophe, “its” indicates possession. Any time you wonder whether or not to include the apostrophe in “its,” simply substitute the words “it is.” If the sentence is correct, you need the apostrophe. Otherwise leave it out. In the sample, the correct form is “it’s.”
即使母語是英文的人都常犯下這種錯誤。大家會搞不清楚，是因為在英文中，一般撇號加 “s” 是用來表示所有格。但是代名詞不同，撇號是用來縮約代名詞／動詞的。“It’s” 就是 “it is” 的意思。若沒有撇號，“its” 就是表示所有格。每當不確定是否該在 “its” 中加撇號，用 “it is” 來替換試試看。若句子仍然沒錯就表示需要用撇號，反之則別用。以例句來說正確的用法是 “it’s”。
10 個導致退稿的常見寫作錯誤之五
Error 5: Don’t Confuse “It’s” With “Its”
“If a person’s arteries are prematurely narrowed, its even more likely that cocaine use will trigger a heart attack.”
Even native English speakers commonly make this error. The confusion arises because in English, an apostrophe with an “s” is normally used to show possession. With pronouns, however, the apostrophe is used to create pronoun/verb contractions. “It’s” means “it is.” Without the apostrophe, “its” indicates possession. Any time you wonder whether or not to include the apostrophe in “its,” simply substitute the words “it is.” If the sentence is correct, you need the apostrophe. Otherwise leave it out. In the sample, the correct form is “it’s.”
即使母語是英文的人都常犯下這種錯誤。大家會搞不清楚，是因為在英文中，一般撇號加 “s” 是用來表示所有格。但是代名詞不同，撇號是用來縮約代名詞／動詞的。“It’s” 就是 “it is” 的意思。若沒有撇號，“its” 就是表示所有格。每當不確定是否該在 “its” 中加撇號，用 “it is” 來替換試試看。若句子仍然沒錯就表示需要用撇號，反之則別用。以例句來說正確的用法是 “it’s”。
