The Apostrophe:

1. The Apostrophe: Uses, Misuse’s and Abuses’

2. The Apostrophe - Uses • Looks like this:’ • Not like this: ‘ • Has 2 functions

3. Indicates a letter is missing: I’m he’s can’t jumpin’ th’end The Apostrophe - Uses

4. Sometimes letters are missing: I’d we’d they’ve I’ve The Apostrophe - Uses

5. Can also show possession Jim’s computer Andy’s presentation The student’s knapsack The Apostrophe - Uses

6. Originally, in old English, possession was shown by adding ‘es’ to a noun: Jimes computer Andyes presentation The studentes knapsack The Apostrophe - Uses

7. Possession was also shown by adding the word ‘his’: Jim his computer Andy his presentation The student his knapsack The Apostrophe - Uses

8. Notice that with both cases—the ‘es’ ending or the ‘his’ ending—the modern day usage of the apostrophe indicates letters are missing: Jimes computer is now Jim’s computer The missing letter is ‘e’ Andy his presentation is Andy’s presentation The missing letters are ‘hi’ The Apostrophe - Uses

9. To show possession by a plural noun, add the apostrophe after the ‘s’ The students’ knapsacks lay all over the place. My sisters’ friends are coming to visit. The babies’ diapers need changing. (Rey, are you busy?) The Apostrophe - Uses

10. If the plural noun is irregular and thus does not end in ‘s’, add apostrophe ‘s’ The children’s clothing The men’s room Women’s magazine The people’s leader The Apostrophe - Uses

11. The Apostrophe – a Quiz • My brother’s teacher’s cars • My brothers’ teacher’s cars • My brother’s teachers’ cars • My brothers’ teachers’ cars

12. If you want to show possession by something or someone whose name ends in ‘s’, add apostrophe ‘s’ James’s cat This is the boss’s pen Jesus’s beard The mistress’s lover The Apostrophe

13. Don’t put an apostrophe after numbers. To express a decade in numerical form just add an ‘s’: The 1970’s x The 1970s  Back in the 80’s x Back in the ’80s  The Apostrophe - Abuses

14. The easy way to remember this is to write out the year as a word: The Seventies The Eighties Notice there is no apostrophe The Apostrophe - Abuses

15. Don’t put an apostrophe after an acronym. Just put a small ‘s’: CD’s x CDs  DVD’s x DVDs  The Apostrophe - Abuses

16. Some homeowners and many cottage owners put the name of their family somewhere on their property, like this: The Martin’s The Nielsen’s The McKinlay’s The Cleary’s But do you see why this is wrong? The Apostrophe - Abuses

17. First of all they are a family so more than one person lives there. If they are going to use an apostrophe it should go after their pluralized surname: The Martins’ house The Nielsens’ cottage The McKinlays’ igloo The Clearys’ hut The Apostrophe - Abuses

18. But more importantly, the apostrophe is just not necessary. They should put their pluralized surname with a ‘The’ in front. Or just put their surname: The Martins The Nielsens McKinlay Cleary The Apostrophe - Abuses

19. How do we convey two essays written by two guys named James? A) James’ essays B) James’s essays C) Jameses’s essays D) None of the above And the correct answer is… The Apostrophe - a Quiz

20. D) None of the above Anytime the apostrophe begins to make your pronunciation sound awkward, don’t use the apostrophe. Find another way. The essays written by the Jameses. The essays written by James and James. The Apostrophe – a Quiz

21. 1) Use the apostrophe to indicate a missing letter: You’re ready to find funny errors, right? 2) Use the apostrophe to indicate possession: Andy’s PowerPoint is about to get even more interesting! The Apostrophe - Review

22. The Apostrophe – on Bloor

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29. The Apostrophe – Misuses? • http://fiveprime.org/hivemind/Tags/apostrophe,grammar

30. The Apostr’phe – Th’end