Sometimes to indicate the structure of unusual words. My problem is i want to put apostrophe s after an authors name. If the common noun is plural, both styles use just an apostrophe. Where do you put the apostrophe after names that end in s. When s is used with any of these words it indicates possession and must. Monash editorial guide apostrophes monash university. To show possession, add an apostrophe followed by an s to the end of a singular noun that does not normally end in s. The apostrophe may be used for clarity with the plurals of single letters as in minding your ps and qs as and ss use of the apostrophe may be recommended only for lowercase letters. In ap style, you use a lone apostrophe to make singular nouns and names that end with s possessive, and in chicago style, most of the time you add an apostrophe and an s, with a few rare exceptions. We know journalists are busy, and it can be difficult to keep up with recent ap stylebook changes. The chicago manual of style online is the venerable, timetested guide to style, usage, and grammar in an accessible online format.
If its a pronoun, disregard all urges, however strong, to put an apostrophe in it. The possessive of a plural noun is formed by adding only an apostrophe when the noun ends in s, and by adding both an apostrophe and s when it ends in a letter other than s. Do not add an apostrophe to a word ending in s when it is used primarily in a descriptive. Ap the witnesss story did not match the events recorded on tape. However, italicized type could not be sent over associated press teletypes and isnt supported by the computer programs in use today. Ontario training network grammar tip apostrophes with.
Add apostrophe s unless the next word begins with s. Add apostrophes if singular, and add an apostrophe if plural. To form the plural of a lowercase letter, place s after the letter. Books that have been in print before are given a digital future, alongside new titles from some of the world s best writers. English literature is replete with instances of apostrophe. Sep 01, 20 ap the witnesss story did not match the events recorded on tape. If possession is ninetenths of the law, just imagine how important correctly signifying it in your writing is. Aug 12, 2019 justice thomas, whose name ends with an s, seems to favor ap style, which recommends leaving off the extra s. Use an apostrophe to indicate that a noun owns something.
In an older convention, described in the fifteenth edition of the chicago manual of style sec. Roy peter clark settles the possessive apostrophe debate. Thanks to the surprise radio airplay of dont eat that yellow snow, apostrophe introduced a whole new audience to the music of frank zappa in the early 70s. In general, follow your style manual or your own good sense, and be consistent. Apostrophe definition in the cambridge english dictionary. Sometimes, its called the grocers apostrophe because of how frequently it is spotted in grocery store advertisements 3 oranges for a dollar. Charlie is jennys cat means the cat named charlie belongs to jenny and to show missing letters in words e. The easiest way to make sure the apostrophe is in the right place is to adhere to the following twostep process of first writing the word as singular or plural, then doin.
The archbishops palace the palace of the archbishops. Books that have been in print before are given a digital future, alongside new titles from some of the worlds best writers. If the apostrophe appears before the letter s then it may denote that the possessive case is singular, i. Hey, frannie, ray shouted across the bull pen, some kids mom is on the phone here. Apostrophe books is a new epublishing company that combines the high standards of old media with the cuttingedge technology of new media. Apostrophes punctuation academic guides at walden university. Be consistent when you use apostrophes after words that end in s. But it adds that the apostrophe in the name of a group should be dropped only in proper names often corporate names that.
There is no need for apostrophes indicating a plural on capitalized letters, numbers, and symbols though some editors, teachers, and professors still prefer them. The apostrophe is an important piece of punctuation. While normal people wonder about apostrophes in general, believe it or not, word nerds have heated arguments over whether to use an additional s with singular possession rule 1. So our first tough issuehow to make words that end with s possessivedoesnt actually have an answer. An apostrophe is used to indicate the omission of one or more letters in a word rock n roll, omission of a century in a year 97, a contraction theyre and to show possession. We took at look at the ap stylebooks section on possessions. The fact is that the use of an apostrophe for decades is insanely wrong. Wc punctuating with apostrophes university of new england. Sam and mary johnson live in a large house with their two daughters rachel and jenna johnson. The apostrophe goes directly after the thing doing the possessing. The apostrophe has been partnered up with the letter s in a few different roles over the last 500 years, and as with many relationships the goalposts have shifted a little over time if the apostrophe appears before the letter s then it may denote that. An apostrophe followed by an s should also appear at the end of irregularlyformed plural nouns that dont normally end in s. Justice thomas, whose name ends with an s, seems to favor ap style, which recommends leaving off the extra s. For an ellipsis, ap calls for three periods, with a space before and after.
It should look like a single closing quotation mark, not an opening one. But just between you and me, you can use this shootfromthehip style in personal email. If a singular proper noun a name ends in s, chicago and ap handle apostrophes differently. Unless you are referring to an event or object belonging to the 1990s e. One aspect of apostrophe use which seems to cause particular trouble is using apostrophes with times, such as in one years time or she has seven years experience. This lesson will take the mystery out of the apostrophe s and leave you. Its also possible to make a singular noun with an s ending possessive by adding an apostrophe and another s at the end, as seen above in rule 1 for apostrophes before the letter s. If the plural is not one that is formed by adding s, an s is added for the possessive, after the apostrophe. Apostrophes are used to form the plurals of letters. This is one of the areas where a great many people seem to slip up grammatically and where another great horde of people become very irate. Every time the associated press stylebook announces a change it. We took at look at the ap stylebooks section on possessions possessives and exorcised some demons coming up with these guidelines.
Since the wedding is jointly possessed by margarita and kris, mla style treats margarita and kris as a single unit and adds an apostrophe s after kris. The main uses of apostrophes are to show ownership e. Using the apostrophe can cause the best of us to quail. Jul 24, 2019 some style guides including the associated press stylebook but not the chicago manual of style recommend using only an apostrophe after singular proper names ending in s for example, achilles heel and tennessee williams plays. The normal rule when forming a possessive with a plural noun is to place the apostrophe after the plural s and skip the possessive s. Sep 20, 2017 when the apostrophe is at the start of the wordas in til be sure that the punctuation mark is inserted correctly. Mistaking a stylebook for a rule book baltimore sun. An apostrophe is used to indicate the omission of one or more letters in a word rock n roll, omission of a century in a year 97, a contraction theyre and to show possession when forming possessives of nouns. Forming possessives of words ending in s or an s sound. Fred and ethel s apartment, fred and ethels stocks. David is a proper noun that doesnt end in s, so to make this name possessive, you change it to davids. Just fyi, i learned in school in the us, mideighties that one should use an apostrophe when pluralizing decades or letters, and it s the method i continue to use now. Apostrophes are punctuation marks used to indicate possession.
Possessive apostrophes do not need to go immediately after a name or other noun referring to a person. The placement of an apostrophe depends upon the word you are making possessive. An apostrophe and an s must be added to the end of the word to create the possessive form moons. A proposed change to the associated press style for forming.
There are conflicting policies and theories about how to show possession when writing. There is no need for apostrophes indicating a plural on capitalized letters, numbers, and symbols though. Use a possessive form after both words if the objects are individually owned. Unless the following word begins with an s, and you just add an apostrophe.
When is s used and when is s used to substitute for of. Possessive of proper names ending in s daily writing tips. Apostrophe in literature is an arrangement of words addressing a non existent person or an abstract idea in such a way as if it were present and capable of understanding feelings. I have a question regarding the use of the apostrophe after dates and acronyms. In ap style, if a proper noun ends in s or an s sound, add an apostrophe only. However, if the name or word itself ends in s for example, dress or ozymandias, then you find yourself in muddier waters. Mary norriss thoughts on pesky possessives the new yorker. Add apostrophe s if singular, and add an apostrophe if plural. Children is plural and so the apostrophe should come after the s. It is used to show when one noun possesses another noun. The apostrophe comes after the possessor or possessors and is correctly placed in this sentence. This is not just a style question like, say, the difference between 19 thcentury books and nineteenthcentury books.
She smiled, youll want to read this gatehouse newsroom post about how to properly use quotation marks in ap style stories then. Apostrophes with words ending in s grammar and punctuation. Answers to questions about apostrophes daily writing tips. To use some examples, the lass s book, the bus s timetable, james s homework, kansas s statute, and so on. For singular common nouns that end in s, both ap and chicago styles use apostrophes. Chris exam scores were higher than any other students. Hi all i have been struggling with a very simple function but i am not sure whether there is a solution for it.
Extra rules and exceptions just make it more confusing. Apostrophes with names ending in s, ch, or z grammar and. Spiralbound book, updated each spring 2019 ap stylebook. When you use an apostrophe in a contraction it shows that a letter or letters. Ap style is kansas chicago manual of style apostrophe rules. The 2019 edition of the associated press stylebook and briefing on media law includes more than 200 new or revised entries, with chapters covering data journalism, business, fashion, food, religion and sports terms, as well as media law, news values, punctuation, social media, polls and surveys and a new chapter on health and science. However, for most words, you will not use apostrophes to form a plural word. In academic writing, words that use apostrophes for missing letters i. We follow the guidance of leading reference books such as the chicago manual of style and the associated press stylebook. With very few exceptions, apostrophes do not make nouns plural. There is another use of the word apostrophe, however, that should not be confused with the punctuation mark of the same name.
The normal rule when forming a possessive with a noun is to add an apostrophe and s. On the other hand, some style manuals and critics suggest that apostrophes should never be used for plurals, even for lower case letters. It is the indispensable reference for writers, editors, proofreaders, indexers, copywriters, designers, and publishers, informing the editorial canon with sound, definitive advice. Plural nouns that end with s have an apostrophe added after the s. Apostrophe in literature is an arrangement of words addressing a nonexistent person or an abstract idea in such a way as if it were present and capable of understanding feelings. The apostrophe comes after the possessor or possessors and is.
My copy of butchers copyediting claims that it is correct to add apostrophes for phrases such as dotting the is and crossing the ts. Using an unnecessary apostrophe to form the plural of a noun is a very common mistake. Names of books, poems, plays, films, and songs should be. Apostrophes in regnal titles containing roman numerals. If it appears after the s, then it will most likely be plural, i. Form the possessive case of a plural noun by adding an apostrophe after the final letter if it is an s or by adding s if the final letter is not an s. For proper names, you add the apostrophes to the end.
Fred and sylvias apartment, fred and sylvias stocks. When someones name ends with an s, it is acceptable to use an apostrophe without an s to show ownership, but linguists with the chicago manual of style, along with others, prefer to add an s after the apostrophe. If the word doesnt own anything, have a look to see if there are any letters missing, and put the apostrophe where the missing letters. What really matters to my readers is punctuation and ap style. When a plural noun ends in s, place an apostrophe after the s to show possession.
Just fyi, i learned in school in the us, mideighties that one should use an apostrophe when pluralizing decades or letters, and its the method i continue to use now. For proper names, you add the apostrophe s to the end. If the plural form doesnt end in s, use apostrophe s. Hammurabis code, dickenss last novel, jamess cello. The ap stylebook has a few simple rules for using quotation marks in ap style stories. It is also a literary device, a figure of speech used in a wide range of different literary forms and even in everyday situations. Many common nouns end in the letter s lens, cactus, bus, etc. Justice souter seems to prefer the recommendations of the chicago manual of style, which says to add the apostrophes to almost all singular nouns and names that end with s. The rule appears to be more typographical than grammatical, e. Singular nouns take an s, even if the noun ends with s. Learn the major differences between chicago and ap style guides to. The apostrophe has been partnered up with the letter s in a few different roles over the last 500 years, and as with many relationships the goalposts have shifted a little over time. Books and magazines often italicize newspaper names as well as book titles and magazine names as part of their inhouse style.
Make a singular noun possessive by adding an apostrophe and an s. For other nouns, youd put just an apostrophe at the end, so if you had a bunch of cats and they had beds, you say that those are the cats beds, or if your parents shared a car, you would say it is your parents car. When a singular noun ends in s, you can make is possessive by putting the apostrophe after the s, but you dont have to. The use of apostrophe s has proven confusing to many people, so if it confuses you, try not to worry. It used to be standard, but ive noticed some lapses lately, e.
Kansas doctors, achilles heel use a possessive form after only the last word if ownership is joint. Like its companion set, overnite sensation, this album found zappa producing highly polished jazzrock, mixing tales of absurd characters with musical showmanship and snarling guitar work. Sep 15, 2016 if possession is ninetenths of the law, just imagine how important correctly signifying it in your writing is. If the answer is yes, check whether its a noun or a possessive pronoun. Coming from the greek meaning turning away, it represents. Some style guides including the associated press stylebook but not the chicago manual of style recommend using only an apostrophe after singular proper names ending in s for example, achilles heel and tennessee williams plays. She may have purchased it herself or received it as a gift, but it. Plural and collective nouns not ending in s also take an s. May 27, 2019 be consistent when you use apostrophes after words that end in s. Notice that one week is singular, which is why the apostrophe goes before the s. Here, the singular proper noun johnson has an s added at the end, so that it becomes the plural word johnsons and. The style that many of us are accustomed tosimply adding an apostrophe after the s e. But three years and 30 days are plural, so the apostrophe goes after the s.
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