Ah, apostrophes.
Entire sites could be (and have been) written about the misuse of apostrophes. We see apostrophes everywhere, but somehow we can still manage to get them wrong, with some pretty embarrassing outcomes.
So, what is proper apostrophe use? Why do we use them to show possession sometimes, but not others? Why can you sometimes use apostrophes to show plurality, but most of the time doing so will get you ridiculed?
Why is it so difficult to get this little piece of punctuation right?
Contractions
Apostrophes show the omission of letters in contractions or numbers in years.
For example:
You’re (you are)
There’s (there is)
She’d (she would)
It’s (it is or it has)
’19 (2019)
O’clock (of the clock)
Southern and Texan dialects have a particular fair for contractions. Here are a few in all their apostrophe glory:
Y’all (you all)
Like’t’ve (like to have)
Y’all’d’ve (you all would have)
Possession and Ownership
Apostrophes indicate possession or ownership (most of the time).
Singular Nouns
For singular nouns, add an apostrophe and s (‘s), even for nouns already ending in s.
For example:
The man’s truck played “Carmina Burana” when he honked the horn.
The building’s front door was strangely placed at the back of the building.
Russ’s book fell out of his bag after he attempted to pole vault over the parked car.
Plural Nouns
For plural nouns that end in s, just add the apostrophe.
For example:
Walking into the teachers’ lounge sometimes feels like walking into a lions’ den.
My neighbors’ house is painted lime green with fuchsia trim.
For plural nouns not ending in s, add an apostrophe and s.
For example:
For a place called a gentlemen’s club, it sure didn’t seem to have many gentlemen inside.
I wouldn’t have elected a hamster as Mayor, but it was the people’s choice.
Compound Nouns
To show ownership by compound nouns, place the apostrophe on the last element of the compound.
For example:
Susie really hates her mother-in-law’s taste in drapes.
The two-year-old’s taste in music was atrocious.
Joint Ownership
To show joint ownership over a single item, add an apostrophe and s to the last owner.
For example:
Rupert and Flora’s dog can play the piano on command.
Amy, Felicity and Jane’s home delivery business involves shipping large amounts of angry bees.
Separate Ownership
To show separate ownership, add the apostrophe and s to each owner.
For example:
Stan’s and Joe’s ideas of what attracts women are wildly different.
Gunther’s and Inga’s memories of their vacation to Cancun were unpleasant, largely due to the category 4 hurricane that hit during the third day of their trip.
Common Apostrophe Mistakes
There seem to be as many rules for when you should not to use apostrophes as you should. Here are some common mistakes and when you should leave the apostrophe off.
Possessive Pronouns
Do not use an apostrophe with a possessive pronoun that ends in s. These words are already possessive and do not need the possessive indicator added to them.
For example:
Its (The tree lost all of its leaves in the frost.)
Hers (The unicycle is his, but the penny-farthing is hers.)
Ours (Yes, that AMC Gremlin parked outside is ours.)
Yours (Is this copy of Ventriloquism for Dummies yours?)
Whose (If it isn’t your book, then whose is it?)
Pluralization
Do not use an apostrophe to make a word plural.
Let me repeat: Do not use an apostrophe to make a word plural.
For example:
Incorrect: The stadium vendor’s were selling hot dogs, ice cream and raw oysters.
Correct: The stadium vendors were selling hot dogs, ice cream and raw oysters.
Numbers and Abbreviations
Do not use an apostrophe when pluralizing numbers or abbreviations.
For example:
The 1980s
DVDs
I.D.s
Common Apostrophe Mix-ups
It’s/Its
The word it’s is a contraction of it is or it has. Only use the contraction it’s when you can replace the word with it is or it has. The word its is a possessive pronoun.
For example:
It’s terrible! The house lost its roof in the storm!
I think it’s a miracle that the car made it all the way home, since I can clearly see smoke coming from its engine.
You’re/Your
The word you’re is a contraction of you are. The word your is a possessive pronoun. Can you replace your word choice with you are? Yes? Then use you’re.
For example:
If you aren’t more studious, you’re going to fail your final exam.
You’re going to wear your father’s old baby blue ruffled tuxedo to prom, right?
Who’s/Whose
Who’s is a contraction of who is or who has. Whose shows ownership.
For example:
Whose junk is this? Who’s responsible for cleaning this up?
Grammaphile 