Home
>
Writing
>
That Cute Lil Ol Apostrophe

That Cute Lil Ol Apostrophe

Have you ever had a student write to tell you they've achieved Grade A's at exams? I have, and one of them was a grade A in English!

The apostrophe seems to be the most misunderstood punctuation mark in the English language, and yet its use is really very simple.

There's really only one rule: an apostrophe is used to replace one or more missing letters.

Nothing more - nothing less.

Contractions

A contraction is a word that is a shortened form of on or several words through the removal of one or more letters.

The following are examples of commonly used contractions.

Do not -> Don't
Did not -> Didn't
Can not -> Can't
Was not -> Wasn't
We have -> We've
They are -> They're
It is -> It's
It has -> It's

The following are examples of contractions used within a sentence:

The boy is walking the dog -> The boy's walking the dog
I did not steal the buns -> I didn't steal the buns
They were not walking to town -> They weren't walking to town

There are times when we need to write as we would speak. This is especially so when writing dialogue in fiction.

The title of this article "That Cute Li'l Ol' Apostrophe" is an example. Here I've used apostrophes to show the contractions that are made in colloquial speech, as in the case of

Little -> Li'l
Old -> Ol'

You may well believe that the first example is wrong; that there should be an extra apostrophe to denote the missing 'e' at the end of 'little'. That would be wrong.

We never use more than one apostrophe to a word.

While the general rule is to use the apostrophe in place of the last missing letter, such as in "shall not -> shan't", if we need to choose between missing letters that we'd normally pronounce and those that are silent, use the apostrophe to denote the missing sounds.

The use of apostrophes in contractions should be easy to remember. Just think of what the word you're using really represents. If it's two words that have been joined to make one, an apostrophe should be in there somewhere. Likewise if it's a truncated word.

Possessives

First of all, a possessive is a word that owns the word that follows it. Confused? Let me show you.

My daughter's toys

The toys belong to my daughter, therefore daughter is the possessive word.

The shop's manager

While the shop doesn't actually own the manager, without the shop there would be no manager so shop becomes the possessive. However,

The manager's shop

would also be correct as the manager runs the shop.

Possessives are always nouns.

But hold on.... where are the missing letters?

Good question. To understand the answer, let's quickly zip back in time.

English is a Germanic language and written English originally shared possessive forms with German. If we go back to the 14th century, when Chaucer wrote "Canterbury Tales", we find that possessives didn't include apostrophes, but had an extra "e" added.

For example:

My daughteres toys / The manageres shop

Although that looks very clumsy to us, that was the accepted form of writing possessives in Chaucer's day. As the language has evolved, we've simply removed the extra 'e' and replaced it with an apostrophe. The same applies where a person's name is the possessive:

Lisaes toys / Jameses shop

becomes

Lisa's toys / James's shop

Although in the case of words or names that end with an 's', it's also acceptable to write

James' shop

So you see, even when using possessives, the apostrophe is replacing a missing letter.

The Exception To The Rule

The possessive form of 'it' should never include an apostrophe. "It's" is a contraction of "It is" while "its" is the possessive form of "it" which is a pronoun and belong alongside other pronouns such as "his", "hers", "ours", "yours" and "theirs", none of which have apostrophes.

Plural Possessives

The same rule as above applies but the apostrophe is moved.

My sisters' clothes / The dogs' bones

In these instances, the clothes belong to more than one sister and the bones belong to several dogs.

Chaucer would have written:

My sisterses clothes / The dogses bones

The last two letters have been removed and replaced by an apostrophe.

If, however, the possessive is a word that already donates the plural form of another word, as in the case of 'child/children', writing "the childrens' shoes" would be wrong. We already know from the word itself that it means more than one child, making "The children's shoes" the correct way of writing it.

Regular Plurals

Apostrophes are used ONLY in contractions and possessives.

Carrot's for sale - Many duck's on a pond - I bought two CD's - I washed his sock's

The above are all examples of an apostrophe being used to show that a word is plural. DON'T DO IT!

It's wrong.

Some otherwise excellent writers trip up on this point and by using an apostrophe where it isn't called for, the meaning of a sentence can change dramatically.

"Beware: Truck's turning!"

What does this mean? Does the turning belong to the truck? If so, why are we being warned of it? Not that I've ever known a truck to own a turning so I can only assume that the apostrophe has been misused.

"Beware: Trucks turning!"

That's better. Now we're being warned that trucks are likely to turn.

Conclusion

The correct use of apostrophes shouldn't be difficult to understand. It really is a case of "no missing letter - no apostrophe needed". If you remember that possessives also have missing letters and that 'its' is an exception, you'll never need make an apostrophe blunder again.

Sharon Jacobsen is a professional content and copy writer living in Cheshire, England. She's been writing in one form or another for more years than she cares to remember and becomes quite upset when people are unnecessarily sloppy with their apostrophes (or lack of them).

If you'd like Sharon to help you with articles or copy, please contact her through her website at http://www.sharon-jacobsen.co.uk

shuttle from O'Hare Brocton .. Lockport Chicago limo O’Hare

In The News:

Experts say hackers who used to focus on Windows operating systems are increasingly targeting Apple IDs as part of a new phishing campaign.

Unitree, a Chinese robotics company that developed a backflipping robot, has now introduced a humanoid robot capable of doing a side flip.

Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

According to the FBI, cybercriminals are sending extortion letters, threatening to release victims' sensitive information unless a ransom is paid.

FireSat is a satellite project designed to detect and track wildfires early, aiming to detect a fire that's the size of a classroom within 20 minutes.

Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson reports that researchers have uncovered a Chrome vulnerability used in a cyber espionage campaign.

Preserving voicemails securely on Android: Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson reveals easy methods to keep memories alive forever.

This phishing kit bypasses 2FA via session hijacking and real-time credential theft. Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson offers four ways to stay safe from Astaroth phishing attacks.

Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson discusses Joby Aviation and Virgin Atlantic planning to launch 200-mph U.K. air taxis linking airports and cities.

Fake Apple virus warnings, security alerts and messages are tactics used to prompt you to call a number or click on a malicious link. The CyberGuy explains how to protect your devices.

The combination of artificial intelligence and neuroscience allows a paralyzed man to manipulate a robotic arm by using his brain to imagine movements.

With the help of artificial intelligence, sophisticated fraud techniques emerging today are virtually undetectable to the untrained eye.

Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents

If you need to free up space on your Mac, consider deleting duplicate photos in your image library. Apple makes it easy to do, and the CyberGuy explains the process.

Microsoft is discontinuing Skype in May after 22 years of service. Kurt the CyberGuy addresses other options for internet-based phone and video service.

Tron 1, a Chinese company's two-legged robot, is versatile and can walk, roll and pivot, even on rough terrain. Tron 1 stands 33 inches tall and weighs 44 pounds.

Hackers are tricking people into installing password-stealing malware by making them press keyboard shortcuts under the pretense of proving they're not bots.

Saving the voices of loved ones can be a comforting way to keep alive memories. Kurt "the CyberGuy" Knutsson explains how to preserve voicemail messages.

Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

The FBI warns that some free online document converters load malware onto people's computers, making their private information vulnerable to attack.

Toyota's compact electric FT-Me is designed to tackle challenges of city living while offering an accessible and eco-friendly transportation solution.

Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson says 23andMe's bankruptcy raises data privacy fears: Opt out, download and delete data now.

UBTech and Zeekr unite with AI robot swarms to make car manufacturing faster and smarter. Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson explains how the process works.

Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson says Apple's Passwords app had a three-month phishing flaw from iOS 18 to 18.2 patch.

Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson discusses how this super-small electric mini-truck takes a big step toward production.

That Cute Lil Ol Apostrophe

Writing