Mike in Japan  +  12762 Wed, 12 Nov 03 12:10 AM I would say 'the audience gives its or 'the audience members give their' Mike in Japan Joined on Tue, Aug 19 2003 Senior Member 4,371 I do like to be beside the seaside

	whl626  +  12768 Wed, 12 Nov 03 01:21 AM If my memory serves me right The audience gives/give .... , ( both are acceptable ) But Americans tend to use it as a collective noun The audience gives And I agree that it is better to put ( members ) to clear the mess whl626 Joined on Sun, Aug 24 2003 Regular Member 882 Learn English every day Nouns

	goggij2  +  14716 Wed, 03 Dec 03 06:31 AM The main issue here is that board is a collective noun. The determination of their vs. its depends on what you are referring to. If you are referring to the board as a whole, "its" is correct. However, if you are referring to individual members of the board "their" is correct. In this case their is most appropriate. A board does not "expect," it is implicit that the members of the board expect. Examples "The board feels their racially diverse leadership is responsible for its success." "The board, determines its budget is fiscally sound," "The board supports its actions in South Africa," "The board denies allegation of its involvement in White Water." goggij2 Joined on Wed, Dec 3 2003 New Member 10 Nouns

	Paul Doherty  +  15865 Mon, 15 Dec 03 02:45 AM Well, I've just joined. This is a bit strange. The possessive of it is without question its, no apostrophe. Mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, theirs, no apostrophe in any of them. It's invariably means it is or it has, and there is no such word as its'. All basic English grammar. And yet, someone says that Actually, according to websters dictionary its and it's are the possive form of it. Usage Note: Its is the possessive form of the pronoun it and is correctly written with or without an apostrophe. It should not be confused with the contraction it's (for it is or it has), which should always have an apostrophe. Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Which is weird, because that dictionary does not say that at all. It says "is correctly written without the apostrophe". See the original here. Why would someone go to the trouble to pretend to quote an authority to sustain a view which is quite incorrect? And then a moderator says I would say 'the audience gives it's' which doesn't inspire confidence! Sorry that my first post is rather critical. Paul Doherty Joined on Mon, Dec 15 2003 UK New Member 02 Grammar, Possessives, Nouns, Pronouns, Contractions, English Grammar, Apostrophes

	ryan smith  +  15878 Mon, 15 Dec 03 04:38 AM Welcome to the discussion forums. Re: Guest comments While guests are always welcome, arguing with them is usually futile: they rarely reply. Sure, someone could have stated for the record that the Guest above was mistaken, but...er...wait, you just did. Thanks! Re: Moderator mistake (it's for its) How many times have I typed their for there or by for buy? More than I'd like to admit. I usually catch the error, however, sometimes I'm not so lucky. There is no spelling or grammar check here. Notice that I said, "welcome to the discussion forums," above. This is a place to talk about stuff. It is not a reference text. Welcome. Keep posting, be critical. Just be sure of what you are being critical of. ryan smith Joined on Tue, Sep 9 2003 CLASSIFIED Full Member 199 Grammar, Spelling, Grammar Check

	Paul Doherty  +  15951 Mon, 15 Dec 03 12:00 PM Hello Ryan, and thanks. Sure, typos aren't a problem, but the cumulative effect would have been to confuse anyone who was looking to clarify their understanding of its and it's. > This is a place to talk about stuff. It is not a reference text. Of course. I suppose I was surprised that no-one had corrected two such errors on a site devoted to the English language in a thread specifically about it's. Paul Doherty