Apostrophes show possession: they tell us something belongs to someone or something.When we want to show possession for regular plurals (when a word needs an "s" to make it plural), the apostrophe goes at the end and no further "s" is added:
- The teachers' association
- The campaigners' letter
- The dogs' dinner
Whereas, when we want to show posession for either a single noun or an irregular plural (for example, children, geese), we add an "apostrophe s":
- Sarah's car
- ɫèAV's assessment tools
- The children's presents
- The geese's pond
Single names that end in an “s” get an “apostrophe s” but plural names get only an apostrophe:
- Mrs Jones’s car
- James's cat
- Whole Foods’ offices
- Starbucks' nearest store
There's one exception that's important to note: "its" and "it's". The posessive form "its" does not have an apostrophe: "it's" always means "it is".
Apostrophes with ease: contractions
Contracted words are the combined and shortened forms of two words, which are commonly used in everyday writing and speech to sound more natural and conversational. They're made by omitting certain letters and replacing them with an apostrophe: for example, in "don't", it replaces the missing “o” from not.
When you miss one or more letters, use an apostrophe:
- "would not" becomes "wouldn’t"
- "cannot" becomes "can’t"
- "we are" becomes "we're"
- and, as before, "it is" becomes "it's"
When not to use apostrophes
A common mistake is using apostrophes when making words plural or when refering to decades and numbers. For example:
- The 1980s had the best music (not "The 1980's")
- Many people retire from working in their 70s (not "their 70's")
- I bought some apples at the store (not "apple's")
