Apostrophes are tools we use in English primarily to show possession. But there are a few other reasons why we use them as well. Check below to see the seven different ways we use apostrophes.
Terms You Need to Know When Using Apostrophes
NOUN: A noun is a person, place, thing, concept, or state. Nouns include “proper nouns,” which are names or titles of people or locations. Examples of nouns include the following: police officer (person); school (place); banana (thing); chaos theory (concept); Uncle Jim (name); or confusion (state).
POSSESSION: Possession occurs when a noun owns something, usually another noun. If you say, “hey! that’s the squirrel’s banana,” you
are giving possession of the banana to the squirrel.
OMISSION/OMIT: To “omit” is to remove something or not include something that is normally there. In English, we omit letters and numbers in words (don’t) and dates (‘90s) to simplify and shorten ideas.
PLURAL POSSESSION: A plural possession occurs when more than one people or thing possess the same thing together (the cows’ trough).
COMPOUND POSSESSION: A compound possession occurs when more than one people or things possess the same thing or something similar separately (Humphrey and Fiona’s persnickety attitudes).
Seven Ways to Use Apostrophes
- Make a Noun Possessive
- Omit Letters & Numbers
- Make an Acronym Possessive
- Create a Plural for a Single Letter
- Create Plural Possessions
- Create Compound Possessions
- Show a Title within a Headline
1. Make a Noun Possessive
Description
A noun is a person, place, thing, concept, or state. Nouns include “proper nouns,” which are names or titles of people or locations. Examples of nouns include the following: police officer (person); school (place); banana (thing); chaos theory (concept); Uncle Jim (name); or confusion (state).
Application
To make a noun possess something, simply add the apostrophe, followed by the letter ‘s.’
Example
- Zeb’s donut had more sprinkles than Myrna’s donut, but it still didn’t taste as good as Wally’s cream-filled donut.
- (In this sentence, Zeb, Myrna, and Wally are all in possession of a donut, so the names/nouns are followed by an apostrophe and an ‘s.’)
2. Omit Letters and Numbers
Description
Apostrophes can be used to omit letters and numbers from words, contractions, and dates to simplify text.
Application
To omit a letter or number, simply put the apostrophe where a letter or number would have been. Omit multiple consecutive letters and numbers with a single apostrophe.
Examples
- Hamburgers really took on a life of their own when White Castle made the first hamburger drive-thru in the ‘20s.
- (In this sentence, the 1 and 9 were removed from the 1920s; the apostrophe was inserted in place of the two omitted numbers.)
- She’d have gone to the Hop ‘n’ Bop concert, but she tragically got stuck in a honey spill incident on the freeway.
- (In this sentence, apostrophes omit “ould” from “would” and the ‘a’ and ‘d’ from “and.”)
3. Create a Plural Single Letter
Descriptions
Apostrophes are necessary when talking about a single letter in plural form. This is the ONLY time you’ll ever use an apostrophe to indicate something is plural.
Application
When you want to talk about a letter as a plural (i.e., there are four s’s in “scissors”), you add an apostrophe and an ‘s’ immediately after the letter.
Example
- Here’s a hint for the only English word that has three consecutive double letters in a row: there are two o’s, two k’s, and two e’s. (Answer: bookkeeper)
- In this sentence, an apostrophe is needed to make the o, k, and e plural.
4. Make an Acronym Possessive
Description
Acronyms are almost always nouns, so the same rule applies to acronyms and apostrophes as they do to nouns.
Application
To make an acronym possess something, simply add the apostrophe, followed by the letter ‘s.’
Example
- After eating that bad hot dog, I’ve decided the FDA’s policies on clarifying “best by” versus “sell by” dates could use an upgrade.
- In this sentence, the FDA is in possession of their policies, so it needs an acronym.
NOTE: Never use an apostrophe to make an acronym plural. Because acronyms (like DVDs or CDs) are always capitalized, a lowercase ‘s’ clearly makes it plural. No apostrophe needed.
5. Create Plural Possessions
Description
If you need to say that multiple people or things all possess the same thing together, use an apostrophe to show plural possession.
Application
If you are using a plural noun that does not end in ‘s,’ (like women, children, or geese), just add an apostrophe, followed by an ‘s.’ If you are using a plural noun that does end in ‘s,’ add an apostrophe (no extra ‘s’ required.)
Examples
- Penelope couldn’t ever figure out why they put the men’s bathroom on the opposite side of the building from the women’s.
- In this sentence, “men” and “women” are plural nouns that don’t end in ‘s,’ so they need an apostrophe and ‘s’ at the end.
- The Johnsons’ house was just painted the same colors as Burger King’s logo.
- In this sentence, “Johnsons” refers to multiple people with that last name, so the noun is plural and the apostrophe indicates that they all posses the home together.
6. Create Compound Possessions
Description
Sometimes two or more people will possess something together (Manny and Stefania’s goat) and sometimes two or more people will possess something similar but they possess it separately (Manny’s and Stefania’s pants). In either case, an apostrophe shows possession.
Application
If two or more people possess something together, an apos-trophe and ‘s’ follow the second person named. If two or more people possess something separately, an apostrophe and ‘s’ follow both person’s names.
Examples
- Manny and Stefania’s goat ate the neighbor’s soda can collection again.
- In this sentence, Manny and Stefania own the same goat, the one that ate the soda can collection.
- Manny’s and Stefania’s pants were drenched in blueberry pudding.
- In this sentence, Manny and Stefania own separate pairs of pants but both pairs were drenched in pudding.
7. Show a Title within a Heading
Description
If you put a title of a book, movie, or something else that would normally be italicized, some style guides require that you put apostrophes to clarify without using italics.
Application
If the style guide you are using doesn’t allow for italics in headings and titles, put an apostrophe on both ends of the name of the book, movie, etc. that are part of the heading or title.
Example
- Customized Advertising on Cell Phones Feels Eerily Like ‘Minority Report,’ Consumers Say
- In this headline for a magazine article, apostrophes (single quotes) are used on either side of the movie title, Minority Report to clarify it as a title within the heading.
A Few Other Apostrophe Examples
- Omitting letters:
- Good Examples: you’re, couldn’t, walkin’, ’twas, ’60s, ‘n’
- Bad Examples: ‘n (should have an apostrophe on both sides), 1960’s (nothing is omitted and it likely isn’t possessive)
- Singular possessive noun: Humphrey’s pencil (pencil belongs only to Humphrey)
- Singular that ends with ‘s’ or ‘z‘: Curtis’s (or Curtis’, though the first is often preferred)
- Singular possessive noun that ends with ‘s’ or ‘z‘ exceptions: Moses’, Jesus’, Zeus’ (never add the extra ‘s’)
- Plural possessive noun (more than one person owns something: pirates’ ship
- Double possessive (plural words that don’t end in ‘s’): children’s, women’s, men’s, oxen’s
- Compound possession: Jeff and Amy’s cat (means they both own the same cat) or Jeff’s and Amy’s cat (means they each own different cats)
- Make a single letter plural:
- Good Example: There are five a’s in the word “abracadabra.”
- Bad Example: There are five as in the word “abracadabra.”
When NOT to Use an Apostrophe
- Don’t put an apostrophe on plural family names that are not possessive of anything
- Bad Example: Merry Christmas from the Jones’
- Bad Example: Merry Christmas from the Curtis’
- Good Example: Merry Christmas from the Joneses (the Jones family)
- Good Example: We just had dinner with the Curtises (the Curtis family)
- Don’t put an apostrophe on plural acronyms that are not possessive of anything
- Bad Example: DVD’s for sale (should be DVDs)
- Don’t put an apostrophe on words that are not contracting (omitting) anything. Or, don’t put an apostrophe on possessive pronouns (like your or its).
- Bad Example: Can I see you’re new shoes?
- Good Example: Can I see your new shoes?
- Bad Example: That little dog is a funny thing; did you see it’s ears flopping around?
- Good Example: That little dog is a funny thing; did you see its ears flopping around?
- Don’t use an apostrophe on plural years
- Bad Example: My favorite music is from the 1990’s.
- Good Example: My favorite music is from the 1990s.
Try It!
Re-punctuate this sentence correctly:
Two Christmas’s ago, my sister’s and her husband’s kids threw away their three cousins Christmas card cause the cousin’s spelled Jenny’s and Carl’s last name with two ms instead of one.
Answer:
Two Christmases ago, my sister and her husband’s (Jenny and Carl’s) kids threw away their three cousins’ Christmas card ‘cause the cousins spelled Jenny and Carl’s last name with two m’s instead of one.