the United Kingdom

What is the difference between England and Britain (or Great Britain)? Three countries make up Great Britain: England, Scotland and Wales. So England is part of Great Britain, and a Scotsman (a person of Scottish origin) is British, too. A person born in Wales is Welsh, and they are British, too. Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom, or “the UK”. So the UK is made up of four countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, the last of which is not part of Great Britain. The formal name of the country is the “United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland”, but in everyday speech Britain is often used to mean the UK, though, as you have seen, this is not perfectly correct. The word “great” was added to “Britain” several hundred years ago, in the Middle Ages, when the English kings had lands in what is now France, and a certain part of it was called Britanny. To avoid confusion, they added the word “great” to the name of the land which was larger.

The map is from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:United_Kingdom_labelled_map7.png

These three words are often used incorrectly too, just like it’s and its, even by native speakers. Again, it’s not very difficult to remember which is correct when.

They’re is the short form of they are:

My parents have gone on holiday and they’re in France today.
When students like a teacher, they’re more likely to do well in the subject he or she teaches.

Their is a possessive word, just like its or my:

My children always leave their toys all over the place.
The dogs ran towards their master.

There is an adverb of place; it means in that place. Think of it as an answer to the question “where?”. Here are some sample sentences:

We didn’t want to go there, but we had to.
Why did you put my book there?

Here’s a sentence with all three words; note how they’re (!) used:

They’re there, and all their friends are with them.

These two words are very often confused. A typical mistake is when somebody uses “its” instead of “it’s”, although the opposite often happens, too. Actually, it’s not very difficult to remember which is correct in a given situation:

you can only use it’s if it is the short form of it is or it has (been). Here are some examples:

When you go abroad, it’s a good idea to take a guidebook with you.
(… it is a good idea…)

Don’t worry, it’s been like this for a long time.
(… it has been like this…)

Are you telling me that it’s my fault?
(… it is my fault?)

The box was hidden in an attic during the war and it’s been there until today.
(… it has been there…)

Its is a possessive word, just like my or your; it means that something owns something or something belongs to it. Examples:

The car was badly damaged but its driver escaped unhurt.
The dog went back to its house.
The house and its garden are a popular tourist attraction.