Questions tagged [apostrophe]
This tag is for questions about the usage of the apostrophe.
173
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"The Bag of My Sister's" vs "The Bag of My Sister" - double possessive
The bag of my sister's
The bag of my sister
The bag of an actress
The bag of an actress's
when do we use and not use Apostrophe + s (for singular, uncountable, and irregular plural nouns) / ...
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"Shiv and Parvati's son" or "Shiv's and Parvati's son"?
I'm writing a story about Lord Ganesh; which of the following is more correct?
Ganesh claimed to be Shiv and Parvati's son.
Ganesh claimed to be Shiv's and Parvati's son.
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2
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Where to put the apostrophe in a sentence where the name contains an appositive?
If the name in the sentence contains an appostive, does it change the location of the apostrophe?
For example:
John Smith's car is red
Now imagine I have an appostive to that subject that comes ...
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6
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Do decades ever get apostrophes?
In researching whether to write 1960s or 1960's, I have found several sources stating that 1960s is correct: one, two, three.
On the other hand, this source states that:
In British usage, we do ...
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“Chemical toxicity" or "Chemical's toxicity”?
When is it chemical toxicity or chemical's toxicity?
I think both words mean the same. Is there any difference between them?
For example,
From studies in animals, however, it became clear that the ...
CommunityBot
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5
answers
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How many apostrophes are allowed in a sentence?
I can think of this sentence -
(Don't touch that) That is my brother's company's CEO's son's dog's toy. - I can still come up with many more apostrophes! ;)
Is there any rule that talks about the ...
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1
answer
33
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Apostrophe after apostrophe [duplicate]
The artifical inteligence generated this sentence and I got in a double.
Does it make sense to put apostrophes like this: Business Contact’s company's workforce.
It means the workforce of the company ...
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0
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What's the correct form: "pets island" or '"pet's island"
I'm trying to write a short paragraph about an animal island and I'm a bit confused as to what would be the correct sentence to use for the title.
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2
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Are there any specific rules for when to use a 'noun+noun' structure and when to use a 'noun+ apostrophe s, or noun+ s apostrophe' structure? [duplicate]
English is sometimes confusing. For instance, do we say 'Goat milk' or 'Goats' milk'? Or 'Cow meat' or 'Cows' meat'?
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Does "on its ownsome" have an apostrophe or not in the its? [closed]
Referring to (say) some computer code, a table, or whatever:
"It sits there and does it on its ownsome."
Should be its or it's ?
(Unrelated aside on spelling of ownsome. https://www....
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1
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Is it correct to avoid using apostrophe in this situation?
I want to know whether it is possible to avoid using the apostrophe as suggested in the second option? or it should remain the same as it is in the first option?. Since it is the salute, I'm not sure ...
CommunityBot
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is it possible (or mandatory) to use apostrophe after the word minutes in this case?
I am doing my business course assessent and the teacher gave us a case study about a coffee shop. The coffee has a policy of serving within 2 minutes.
Of course, in my answer, I can write "...
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2
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Is there a rule to use apostrophes in the possessive form instead of "of"?
Compared to my natural language (Portuguese) it is very strange to use apostrophes to denote ownership, like:
Peter's book.
In Portuguese, I would say "the book of Peter".
Also, “...
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votes
1
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Title with apostrophe
If I say my title is: Vice President’s ServiceNow Developer
This implies that I work for the vice president, as a ServiceNow developer, kinda like an assistant, right?
My thought the experiment was to ...
CommunityBot
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2
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confused about the usage of apostrophe
I was confused about the usage of apostrophe. Can you please answer which one is correct and why?
Do you copy other's code?
Do you copy others' code?
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What does an apostrophe change, appearing instead of "g" in the ending "ing"? (doing → doin')
As far as I understand, if an apostrophe is in place of some letter, this letter isn't pronounced. For example:
is not ['iz 'na:t] → isn't ['iznt]
about [ə'baut] → 'bout ['baut]
because [bɪˈkɑ:z] → '...
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Which is correct: any of humans' languages,OR 'any of human languages'?
I am currently working on my SAT book, and I encountered a question like this:
The Golden Record contains a great cross-section of human civilizations, but that information still needs to be ...
Kyle S
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0
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"two weeks' time" vs "two-week time"
I know that:
(1) in two weeks' time - correct
(2) in two-week time - incorrect
But I don't know what will be without "in".
For example (my own sentences):
(3) Two weeks' time is enough for a ...
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172
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What is the difference in using an apostrophe between UK and US?
cambridge.org: UK doll's house
cambridge.org: US dollhouse
cambridge.org: UK year end
cambridge.org: US year's end
In the first example, an apostrophe is typical for UK and not typical for US.
In the ...
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1
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When we refer to a 'Room key', is the room being used as an adjective here? can't I say 'Room's key' instead?
What I am trying to find out here is the etymology of the phrase "Room key". Surely, it must have been "room's key" first. When and how did it become "Room key"? and Can ...
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Should there be a possessive in "like that of a peacock('s)"?
She has great charm, even like that of a peacock's
She has great charm, even like that of a peacock
The comparison is not between the lady and the peacock. It is between the charms of the lady and ...
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4
answers
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Shouldn't there be a ('s) in "University of Texas('s) Basketball Coach"?
I came across this New York Times headline:
University of Texas Basketball Coach Faces Felony Domestic Assault Charge
Shouldn't there be a ('s) in this construction like, "University of Texas's ...
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138
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for word ending with s/ or s sound, when do we omit extra s n when don't?
I've just started reading 'Writing in the technical field' by Thorsten Ewald and in it, it was written for the possessive of words ending with s( or s sound) you can choose to add s or not ( most ...
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6
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When a word ends in 's' or 'x', do you add 's or just an '?
1) Alex's house
2) Alex' house
When the noun ends with the letter 's' or 'x', do I need to put 's' after an apostrophe or not?
I remember I read some rules related to this in my school ...
CommunityBot
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vote
1
answer
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Apostrophe with job titles
Do we use apostrophes when talking about a job position within a company?
Example:
IDB's director John
or
IDB director John
Thanks
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2
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127
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Which use of possessive is correct "I'm grateful for my mother's love" or "I'm grateful for the love of my mother"?
Which use of possessive is correct
"I'm grateful for my mother's love"
or
"I'm grateful for the love of my mother" ?
Or are they both correct, but carry different meaning? I ...
CommunityBot
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1
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What does “a'walking” mean?
The title of Elvis Presley’s song: The girl next door went a'walking.
What does a’ mean?
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Rules for using possessive "s" to describe quantity
I'd like to know how to explain the rules for use of possessive "s" to describe the quantity of something, as in, "two hours' work" to an English learner.
This answer at english....
CommunityBot
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Bob Marley music or Bob Marley's music
Which of these sentences would you say? I think they're both idiomatic. What's the difference between them?
I listen to Bob Marley music.
or
I listen to Bob Marley's music.
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Are any possessive apostrophes needed here? "...headphones for their iPhones"
I am a new English learner and need some assistance with understanding when to properly use an apostrophe for showing possession.
I have an example sentence:
Sophie, Brock, and Hannah all own ...
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2
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Jeans' pocket vs jeans pocket
I always thought "jeans' pocket" was correct. Since you say, "the pocket of his jeans."
However, when I searched for "his jeans' pocket" on Google Books, the results returned the version without the ...
0
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2
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274
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Using 's for "ancestors"
Majumder grew up in the house of his _______.
ancestors'
ancestor
Which one of these should I use?
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Is the apostrophe in the title "Demon's souls" misused?
The title for the game as advertised is Demon's Souls, which in my understanding translates to "Demon is souls" which is relatively wrong, I think.
Rather it should be written like Demons ...
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2
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If I want to avoid the possessive apostrophe, could I write "John his new tires are great" instead of "John's tires are great"?
How to rewrite a sentence to avoid the possessive apostrophe?
Why? I have been told to avoid apostrophes altogether for international English as it's confusing. This is easily done for contractions ...
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Is it apostrophe-s or only the apostrophe for singular nouns ending in -s?
This page gives the following examples of correct punctuation showing possession for singular nouns ending in -s:
Thomas's job
the bus's arrival
James's fiancée
Steve Davis's victory
VS
Socrates' ...
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Plural form of "brother-in-law" when a possessive case is involved
My brother's friend's opinions
My brothers' friend's opinions
Now, let us suppose that the brother in "1" is a brother-in-law and that all the brothers in "2" are brothers-in-law....
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How to use an apostrophe for two or more names?
In this sentence:
In Fermat, Lagrange, Newton and Gauss studies [...].
Where should we put the apostrophe?
The complete sentence is here:
Besides Fermat, Lagrange, Newton and Gauss' studies ...
CommunityBot
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Apostrophe usage in job titles
Why is apostrophe not used in job titles such as "Production Assistant" or "Production Engineer". My understanding about these roles is that people are part or are members of the ...
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I was at my parents. Vs. I was at my parents'./I was at Chris. vs. I was at Chris's
I am wondering which sentences from the following sentences is correct:
I was at my parents.
or
I was at my parents'.
I was at Chris.
or
I was at Chris's.
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What does the single quotation(') in 'bout mean?
More specifically, I want to know what is the single quotation(') in 'bout means. I know 'bout means about but does that mean we always can use a single quotation for words that start with a vowel? Or ...
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Apostrophe with company names [closed]
How do I say this?
Zowie mice are better than Logitech.
Zowie's mice are better than Logitech's.
Zowies are better than Logitechs.
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Should I keep apostrophes in this case?
Do I need to keep apostrophes in the following sentence?:
Introduction of the four-day working week worked to everyone's
advantage, both the employees' and the company's.
Or can I simply drop them?:
...
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"This's" instead of "this is"
Is it popular to contract "this is" to "this's"? Or is it better to keep the full form?
This's where we'll go tomorrow.
Or
This is where we'll go tomorrow.
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Genitive plural opinions! Which is correct: Tomorrow the sister of a university friend of Clare and John is getting married. Or of Clare's and John's? [duplicate]
Native speaker here confused about genitive case.
Genitive plural opinions! Which is correct:
Tomorrow the sister of a university friend of Clare and John is getting married
Tomorrow the sister of a ...
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3
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the use of possessive s with both words before the adjective
which one is correct? should we use apostrophe s with both nouns preceding?
I want to know teachers' and students' favorite movies?
I want to know teachers and students' favorite movies?
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possessive and adjective form of "the 1920s"
What's the possessive or adjective form of the 1920s? Is it the 1920s' (with an apostrophe following the s)?
Most books only talk about the plural form, which I think is a settled issue, but the ...
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Is the possessive of a name that ends in 's' pronounced differently if it refers to a group of people (like a band) instead of a single person? [duplicate]
How do you think names that have the plural "s" should be pronounced when they get the apostrophe? I researched this on the web and I couldn't find any very reliable results. For example, ...
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2
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"Someone else's", "Someone's else", and "Someone else's one"
For example:
-- You should move your car out of the way.
-- This is not my car but someone else's car.
I want to get rid of the redundancy in the sentence which is presented by the second "...
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Sequential Possession
Why do we avoid sequential possession?
For example, why don't we write
'My friend's wife's necklace was stolen'
Instead we write, 'The necklace of my friend's wife was stolen. '
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Is it "nobody's business but the Turks" or "nobody's business but the Turks'"?
Is it nobody's business but the Turks (it's nobody's business, except that it is the business of the Turks); or is it nobody's business but the Turks' (it's nobody's business, except that it is the ...
Hammerite