An apostrophe ( ’ ) is used
with the letter s to indicate that
something belongs to someone or something. In other words it is used to
indicate possession.
Many errors centre on the position of the
apostrophe in relation to the letter s.
A singular noun usually indicates possession by adding ’s (apostrophe
s) to the singular form as in the
girl’s mother, Peter’s car, the company’s policy, the town’s pride and joy.
A plural noun usually indicates possession by adding s’ (s apostrophe) to the plural form ending in s, as in all the teachers’
cars, many parents’ attitude to discipline, and by adding ’s to irregular plural nouns that do
not end in s, as in women’s shoes.
In the possessive form of a name
or singular noun that ends in s, x
or z, the apostrophe may or may not
be followed by s. In words of one
syllable the final s is usually
added, as in James’s house, the fox’s lair, Roz’s dress.
The final s is most frequently omitted in names,
particularly in names of three or more syllables, as in Euripides’ plays. In many cases the presence or absence of the
final s is a matter of convention.
The apostrophe is also used to indicate omitted letters in contracted
forms of words, such as can’t and you’ve. They are sometimes used to
indicate missing century numbers in dates, as the ’60s and ’70s, but are
not used at the end of decades, etc, as in 1960s,
not 1960’s.
Generally, apostrophes are no longer used to
indicate omitted letters in shortened forms that are in common use such as ’phone and ’flu, now used simply as phone
and flu.
Apostrophes are often omitted wrongly in
modern usage, particularly in the media
and by advertisers, as in womens
hairdressers, childrens helpings. This is partly because people are unsure
about when to use them and when not to use them, and partly because of a modern
tendency to punctuate as little as possible.
Apostrophes, on the other hand, are also frequently used wrongly nowadays as in potato’s for sale and Beware of the dog’s. Again, this is
because people are unsure about when, and when not, to use them.
NB: Its
and It’s
Its is an exception to the possession rule which
sometimes causes confusion. When
used to indicate possession (its fault,
its engine, its environment) its has
no apostrophe.
It is only when
used as a contraction that an apostrophe is added (it’s cold, it’s raining, it’s
still morning). Similarly,
possessive pronouns that end in an s
never take an apostrophe (yours, hers, ours, theirs).
The asterisk (
* ) is commonly used to direct the
reader’s attention from a particular word or piece of text to a footnote or to
another part of the text. The asterisk is placed after the relevant word or
piece of text.
The asterisk is often used to replace a letter. The asterisk is usually one of a series and
such a series is often found as a substitute for letters that would make up a
word that would cause offence in some way, often swear words, as in: I can’t
open this b****y tin
The asterisks replace the
letters l o o d. When the letters are
used instead of the asterisks the swear word bloody is formed.
The three-dot
ellipsis ( ... )is used to indicate missing material. This missing material
may be one word, as in the sentence I
told you to get the ... out of here where the missing word is the swear
word hell.
The missing material may be
several words or a longer piece of text. For example, the three-dot ellipsis may be used to replace part of a quotation,
proverb, etc, as in: Ah well you know,
the moving finger writes ... (where and,
having writ, moves on is omitted) and
You know what they say. A
stitch in time ... (where saves nine is omitted).
It
can also be used to indicate an unfinished thought or statement, as in: We might
win handsomely; on the other hand ...
Sometimes a dash is used in
the above cases.
The oblique
( / ) is a diagonal mark that has
various uses. Its principal use is to show alternatives, as in: he/she
Dear Sir/Madam
two-/three-room flat.
The oblique
is also used in some abbreviations, as in: c/o
Smith (meaning care of Smith)
An oblique
is sometimes used instead of the word per,
as in: 60km/h (60 kilometres per
hour).
1 Rewrite the following sentences, inserting apostrophes where this is appropriate.
a I cant
remember his phone number and I dont know his address.
b Youll soon
find out that youve made the wrong decision.
c Wed missed
the train and there wasnt another one for several hours.
d Its
amazing to think that they’ve known each other since the 60s.
e Its an interesting idea, but
we need to consider its advantages and disadvantages.
2 Rewrite the following phrases, inserting an apostrophe where this is appropriate.
my mothers house
admiring her new kitchens modern facilities that streets convenient
location his two aunts wise advice
the only local schools role
in the community that sites most obvious disadvantage
Jacks main objection
mens outdoor clothes
stylish womens hairdressers
a lack of childrens nurseries
in the area Jamess victory over the rest of the competitors consider all the
travel agents best deals the foxs bushy tail Rozs beautiful wedding dress
the potatos long-lasting
culinary appeal potatoes for sale here
the last centurys most
significant contributions to industry all vegetables
drastically reduced
its universal appeal.
a I can’t remember
his phone number and I don’t know his address.
b You’ll
soon find out that you’ve made the wrong decision.
c We’d
missed the train and there wasn’t another one for several hours.
d It’s
amazing to think that they’ve known each other since the ’60s.
e It’s an interesting idea, but
we need to consider its advantages and disadvantages.
2
my mother’s house
admiring her new kitchen’s modern facilities that street’s convenient
location his two aunts’ wise advice
the only local school’s role
in the community that site’s most obvious
disadvantage Jack’s main
objection
men’s outdoor clothes
stylish women’s hairdressers
a lack of children’s
nurseries in the area James’s victory over the rest of the competitors consider
all the travel agents’ best deals the fox’s bushy tail Roz’s beautiful wedding
dress
the potato’s long-lasting
culinary appeal potatoes for sale here
the last century’s most
significant contributions to industry all vegetables
drastically reduced
its universal appeal.
