it

[ it ]

/ ɪt /

pronoun, nominative it, possessive its or (Obsolete or Dialect) it, objective it; plural nominative they, possessive their or theirs, objective them.

(used to represent an inanimate thing understood, previously mentioned, about to be mentioned, or present in the immediate context): It has whitewall tires and red upholstery. You can't tell a book by its cover.

(used to represent a person or animal understood, previously mentioned, or about to be mentioned whose gender is unknown or disregarded): It was the largest ever caught off the Florida coast. Who was it? It was John. The horse had its saddle on.

(used to represent a group understood or previously mentioned): The judge told the jury it must decide two issues.

(used to represent a concept or abstract idea understood or previously stated): It all started with Adam and Eve. He has been taught to believe it all his life.

(used to represent an action or activity understood, previously mentioned, or about to be mentioned): Since you don't like it, you don't have to go skiing.

(used as the impersonal subject of the verb to be, especially to refer to time, distance, or the weather): It is six o'clock. It is five miles to town. It was foggy.

(used in statements expressing an action, condition, fact, circumstance, or situation without reference to an agent): If it weren't for Edna, I wouldn't go.

(used in referring to something as the origin or cause of pain, pleasure, etc.): Where does it hurt? It looks bad for the candidate.

(used in referring to a source not specifically named or described): It is said that love is blind.

(used in referring to the general state of affairs; circumstances, fate, or life in general): How's it going with you?

(used as an anticipatory subject or object to make a sentence more eloquent or suspenseful or to shift emphasis): It is necessary that you do your duty. It was a gun that he was carrying.

Informal. (used instead of the pronoun its before a gerund): It having rained for only one hour didn't help the crops.

noun

(in children's games) the player called upon to perform some task, as, in tag, the one who must catch the other players.

Slang.

sex appeal.
sexual intercourse.

Nearby words

Idioms

get with it, Slang. to become active or interested: He was warned to get with it or resign.

have it, Informal.

to love someone: She really has it bad for him.
to possess the requisite abilities for something; be talented, adept, or proficient: In this business youeither have it or you don't.

with it, Slang.

aware of the latest fads, fashions, etc.; up-to-date.
attentive or alert: I'm just not with it early in the morning.
understanding or appreciative of something, as jazz.
Carnival Slang.being a member of the carnival.

Origin of it

before 900; Middle English, variant of Middle English, Old English hit, neuter of he¹

Usage note

See me.

it

[ it ]

/ ɪt /

noun British Informal.

sweet vermouth: gin and it.

Origin of it

1930–35; It(alian vermouth)

It

Italian(def 3).

IT

information technology.

It.

Italian.

Italy.

it's

[ its ]

/ ɪts /

contraction of it is: It's starting to rain.

contraction of it has: It's been a long time.

Can be confusedit's its (see confusables note at its)

Usage note

See contraction.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for it

it

/ (ɪt) /

pronoun (subjective or objective)

refers to a nonhuman, animal, plant, or inanimate thing, or sometimes to a small babyit looks dangerous; give it a bone

refers to an unspecified or implied antecedent or to a previous or understood clause, phrase, etcit is impossible; I knew it

used to represent human life or experience either in totality or in respect of the present situationhow's it going?; I've had it; to brazen it out

used as a formal subject (or object), referring to a following clause, phrase, or wordit helps to know the truth; I consider it dangerous to go on

used in the nominative as the formal grammatical subject of impersonal verbs. When it functions absolutely in such sentences, not referring to any previous or following clause or phrase, the context is nearly always a description of the environment or of some physical sensationit is raining; it hurts

(used as complement with be) informal the crucial or ultimate pointthe steering failed and I thought that was it

noun

(in children's games) the player whose turn it is to try to touch anotherCompare he 1 (def. 5b)

informal

sexual intercourse
sex appeal

informal a desirable quality or abilityhe's really got it

Word Origin for it

Old English hit

the internet domain name for

Italy

IT

abbreviation for

information technology

It.

abbreviation for

Italian

Italy

it's

/ (ɪts) /

contraction of

it is or it has

usage

One of the commonest mistakes made in written English is the confusion of its and it's . You can see examples of this every day in books, magazines, and newspapers: its good for us; a smart case with it's own mirror, and even Cheng, and its' subsidiaries . Its refers to something belonging to or relating to a thing that has already been mentioned: the baby threw its rattle out of the pram . It's is a shortened way of saying it is or it has (the apostrophe indicates that a letter has been omitted: it's a lovely day; it's been a great weekend .

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for it

it

pron.

Old English hit, neuter nominative and accusative of third person singular pronoun, from Proto-Germanic demonstrative base *khi- (cf. Old Frisian hit, Dutch het, Gothic hita "it"), from PIE *ko- "this" (see he). Used in place of any neuter noun, hence, as gender faded in Middle English, it took on the meaning "thing or animal spoken about before."

The h- was lost due to being in an unemphasized position, as in modern speech the h- in "give it to him," "ask her," "is only heard in the careful speech of the partially educated" [Weekley]. It "the sex act" is from 1610s; meaning "sex appeal (especially in a woman)" first attested 1904 in works of Rudyard Kipling, popularized 1927 as title of a book by Elinor Glyn, and by application of It Girl to silent-film star Clara Bow (1905-1965). In children's games, meaning "the one who must tag the others" is attested from 1842.

Idioms and Phrases with it

it

In addition to the idioms beginning with it

it figures
it never rains but it pours
it stands to reason
it takes all sorts
it takes getting used to
it takes one to know one
it takes two to tango

also see:

that does it

it

pronoun, nominative it, possessive its or (Obsolete or Dialect) it, objective it; plural nominative they, possessive their or theirs, objective them.

noun

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RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Idioms

Origin of it

Usage note

it

noun British Informal.

Origin of it

It

IT

It.

it's

Usage note

it

pronoun (subjective or objective)

noun

Word Origin for it

the internet domain name for

IT

abbreviation for

It.

abbreviation for

it's

contraction of

usage

it

it