There are one or two cases in which it is acceptable to use an apostrophe to form a plural, purely for the sake of clarity: It's very important to remember this grammatical rule. The situation was different in the 1990s.)
She buys big bags of organic apples and carrots.) Traditional Italian pizzas are thin and crisp.) The general rule is that you should not use an apostrophe to form the plurals of nouns, abbreviations, or dates made up of numbers: just add -s (or -es, if the noun in question forms its plural with -es). It’s a comfortable car and it’s got some great gadgets. it’s (with an apostrophe) means ‘it is’ or ‘it has’:.its (without an apostrophe) means ‘belonging to it’:.These two words can cause a lot of confusion: many people are uncertain about whether or not to use an apostrophe. the Berlin Wall came down in the autumn of ’89 (short for 1989). It also shows that numbers have been omitted, especially in dates, e.g. Here are some examples of apostrophes that indicate missing letters: See also it's or its? Apostrophes showing omissionĪn apostrophe can be used to show that letters or numbers have been omitted. These are the words his, hers, its, our, your, their (meaning 'belonging to or associated with him, her, it, us, you, or them'). The only cases in which you do not need an apostrophe to show belonging is in the group of words called possessive pronouns - these are the words his, hers, ours, yours, theirs (meaning ‘belonging to him, her, us, you, or them’) - and with the possessive determiners. He employs 14 people at his men’s clothing store. The children’s father came round to see me.
#What more do you need to say show plus#
With a plural noun that doesn’t end in – s: add an apostrophe plus s: My duties included cleaning out the horses’ stables.
The work is due to start in two weeks’ time. The mansion was converted into a girls’ school. With a plural noun that already ends in - s: add an apostrophe after the s: With personal names that end in - s but are not spoken with an extra s: just add an apostrophe after the - s:Ĭonnors' finest performance was in 1991.
#What more do you need to say show how to#
If you aren’t sure about how to spell a name, look it up in an official place such as the organization’s website. Note that there are some exceptions to this rule, especially in names of places or organizations, for example: Thomas's brother was injured in the accident. With personal names that end in - s: add an apostrophe plus s when you would naturally pronounce an extra s if you said the word out loud:ĭickens's novels provide a wonderful insight into Victorian England. With a singular noun or most personal names: add an apostrophe plus s: Here are the main guidelines for using apostrophes to show possession: Singular nouns and most personal names You use an apostrophe to show that a thing or person belongs or relates to someone or something: instead of saying the party of Ben or the weather of yesterday, you can write Ben’s party and yesterday’s weather. For information about this, you can go straight to the section it's or its? Apostrophes showing possession People are often unsure about whether they should use its (without an apostrophe) or it’ s (with an apostrophe). There are two main cases – click on the links below to find straightforward guidance: The best way to get apostrophes right is to understand when and why they are used. Are you uncertain about when to use an apostrophe? Many people have difficulty with this punctuation mark.