Apostrophes

Apostrophes can be used in two waysto show possession and to indicate omission.

Apostrophes Used to Show Possession

The rules of grammar require that an apostrophe be used to form both singular and plural possessive nouns. Singular Possessive Nouns Use an apostrophe followed by an s when you form the possessive of a singular noun. Ex: the cats litter box the dogs owner the professors study guide

In each of these cases, the noun (cat, dog and professor) is singular, meaning that there is only one of each. The apostrophe s is used to indicate ownership. The Whose Test: If in doubt about whether a word is possessive or not, ask yourself whose litter box?, whose owner?, or whose study guide? These questions are key indicators that imply ownership. By answering to whom the item belongs, you have just revealed the noun to be possessive and required an apostrophe. Regular Plural Possessive Nouns A plural noun that ends with the letter s requires an apostrophe after the s to show possession. Ex: the cats litter box the dogs owner the professors study guides

In the examples above, the s after each word indicates that there are more than one cat, more than one dog and more than one professor. The apostrophe following the s indicates possession. The best way to determine the differences between singular and plural possessive nouns is illustrated in the following chart: Singular Nouns Singular Possessive Plural nouns with s Plural Possessives with s Cat Cats Cats Cats Dog Dogs Dogs Dogs Professor Professors Professors Professors Boy Boys Boys Boys Pilot Pilots Pilots Pilots

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Irregular Plural Possessive Nouns Some nouns are irregular in their plural form. They do not merely add an s to their singular forms to create the plural. Nouns such as man, woman, and child change in their spelling to men, women and children to create the plural form. In these cases, an apostrophe followed by an s is needed. Ex.: the mens room the childrens playground womens apparel

Common Possessive Pronoun Mistakes There are a few common errors that appear in students writing. Its and Its Its is always a possessive pronoun. Its is the contraction for it is. One cannot be substituted for the other. Ex. The bird built its nest. Correct The bird built its nest. Incorrect Explanation: Expanding the contraction by supplying the missing letters (its it is) makes it easy to see that the sentence no longer makes sense: In the second example, the contraction its would mean The bird built it is nest. Ex. Its the dawning of the time of revolution.

Self Test: When trying to determine whether to use its in a sentence, replace the contraction with the two separate words it is.
Theyre and Their Theyre is a contraction for the words they are. Their is a possessive pronoun. One cannot be substituted for the other. Ex. Theyre the only ones who know the information. Correct

Their the only ones who know the information. Incorrect Explanation: In the first sentence, the contraction theyre would expand to they are, which makes sense in the sentence.
Ex. Their books were left on the table. Notice: No possessive pronouns require an apostrophe. Proper Names Some proper names ending in an s cause many problems for writers. Determining if there should be an apostrophe s or an s apostrophe depends on whether the name is plural or singular, or whether there is a pattern of repeated s sounds.

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Singular Possessive Proper Nouns ending in s Here, there is only one person having ownership, Charles Dickens in the first case and Charles in the second case. Ex.: Charles Dickens In Charles Dickenss novel Charles Charless network

The Continuous S The rule of grammar states that if a name has more than one syllable and ends in an s, and the last syllable makes an /ez/ sound (as in Texas), then only an apostrophe is needed. (The intention is to make pronunciation easier.) Ex.: Moses Moses book Jesus Jesus glass Socrates Socrates view Texas Texas law

Apostrophes Used to Show Omission

Contractions An apostrophe is needed when making contractions in order to take the place of omitted letters. Ex: cannot cant I will Ill do not dont they are theyre should not shouldnt I would Id ***** Although using contractions is a common practice in our everyday writing, contractions are sometimes viewed suspiciously in formal writing. *****

Numbers
An apostrophe is required to omit part of a year. Ex: I love the 80s. The 60s was an era of great musical influence. An apostrophe is not required to form the plural of a number. Ex.: In the 1950s He scored in the 1500s on his SATs. Letters An apostrophe is not needed to form the plural of abbreviations Ex.: CDs SATs PHDs Some grammar guides also state that an apostrophe is no longer required to form the plurals of letters. *****Follow the recommendations of the publication manual (MLA or APA) concerning apostrophes used to form plurals of letters.*****

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Exercise 1 Complete the following exercise to test your understanding of apostrophes. Answers to this exercise appear on the next page. 1. The ships anchor began to drag across the ocean floor. 2. The candidates press release ignored the issue. 3. I refused to obey the professors warning. 4. The court ordered the four suspects release. 5. Im not able to assist with the groups project. 6. I woudnt do that if I were you. 7. They werent friends of mine. 8. The childrens school is being tested this week. 9. Todays lesson is over the bodys ability to fight infection. 10. Theyre debating this years budget. 11. The explosion of the space shuttle was this years first major crisis. 12. Its my right to speak freely. 13. Texas common law states that your actions are illegal. 14. James mother is the greatest woman Ive ever met. 15. Hot air balloons obstructed the geeses flight pattern. 16. Sandras dress is red. 17. The spies identities had been compromised. 18. The tree is losing its leaves. 19. Im a member of the class of 93. 20. The bear tried to steal the campers ice chest.

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Answer Key: 1. The ships anchor began to drag across the ocean floor. 2. The candidates press release ignored the issue. **OR** The candidates press release ignored the issue. 3. I refused to obey the professors warning. **OR** I refused to obey the professors warning. 4. The court ordered the four suspects release. 5. I am not able to assist with the groups project. 6. I wouldnt do that if I were you. 7. They werent friends of mine. 8. The childrens school is being tested this week. 9. Todays lesson is over the bodys ability to fight infection. 10. Theyre debating this years budget. 11. The explosion of the space shuttle was the years first major crisis. 12. Its my right to speak freely. 13. Texas common law states that your actions are illegal. **OR** Texas common law states that your actions are illegal. 14. Jamess mother is the greatest woman that Ive ever met. 15. Hot air balloons obstructed the geeses flight pattern. 16. Sandras dress is red. 17. The spies identities had been compromised. 18. The tree is losing its leaves. 19. Im a member of the class of 93. 20. The bear tried to steal the campers ice chest. **OR** The bear tried to steal the campers ice chest.

In questions 2, 3, and 20 there are two possible answers due to the ambiguity of the possessive adjectives candidates, professors, and campers. In these sentences, the first answer is right if you thought there were more than one candidate, more than one professor, or more than one camper. If you thought there was only one candidate and one professor, then the second answer would be correct. In number 13, Texas could be considered an adjective describing what type of law.

Copyright 2003 by the Academic Center and the University of Houston-Victoria. Created 2003 by Bernice Dobbins. Revised 2005.

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