Chapter 30. The
Apostrophe
1) Add –‘s to singular nouns and indefinite pronouns.
Ex) Anyone’s eyes would widen.
2) Add –‘s to plural nouns not ending in –s.
Ex) The bill establishes children’s rights.
3) Add only an apostrophe to plural nouns ending in –s.
Ex) Workers’ incomes have not risen much over the past decade.
4) Add –‘s only to the last word of compound words or word groups.
Ex) The council president’s address was a bore.
5) With two or more words, add –‘s to one or both depending on meaning.
Ex) (individual possession) -> Zimbale’s and Mason’s comedy techniques are similar.
(joint possession) -> The child recovered despite her mother and father’s neglect.
b. Delete or replace any apostrophe in a plural noun,
a singular verb, or a possessive personal pronoun.
1) The unleashed dog’s began traveling in a pack. (X)
⇒
2) It run’s more reliably. (X)
⇒
3) The credit is her’s not their’s not. (X)
⇒
c. Use an apostrophe to indicate the omission in a
standard contraction.
Ex) Legislators know their going to have to cut the budget to eliminate it’s deficit. (X)
⇒
Posted by Minkee Kim
