Some writers and editors add only an apostrophe to all nouns ending in s. If the noun is plural, or already ends in s, just add an apostrophe after the s. The book that belongs to alison becomes alisons book. When the possessor is plural, but does not end in an s, the apostrophe. Using an unnecessary apostrophe to form the plural of a noun is a very common mistake. In any case, the notion that words ending in s or an s sound should not have an. Porters five forces theory is an important tool for analysis. Nouns can be possessive and express ownership, usually following the use of of. This problem is all about where you put an apostrophe for plurals when you want to show possession, although they are really about substitution. The blue book of grammar and punctuation and its related website. Its time to buy new book s for our semester two classs. In 2014 we issued the 11th edition of the blue book in which we expanded the discussion of the accepted methods for dealing with possession. The chicago manual of style agrees and includes the specific example kansass legislature.
Its is a contraction for it is and its is a possesive pronoun meaning belonging to it. This shows that the policies belong to the institution. Check your answers with the interactive version of the exercise. Take it seriously and end its suffering by learning the following eight rules. Here are 10 exercises to help you practice and learn where to place the possessive apostrophe s to show possession of a noun in english. When you are using its as a possessive, dont use the apostrophe. Use an apostrophe to mark omissions in contractions and numbers. By contrast, when two or more nouns separately possess something, add an apostrophe to each noun listed. The difference is that not all basic sentence partsor parts of speechhave to be included all of the time to actually make up a complete and functioning sentence, but its parts do have to work together accurately for a writer to convey his or her intended ideas. Add an apostrophe and an s to form the possessive of the pronouns anyone, anybody, everyone, everybody, someone, somebody, no one, and nobody. Possessive apostrophe possessive apostrophe is the use of an apostrophe to show ownership or a close relationship.
The apostrophe, quotation marks, and italicsunderlining. It is similar to words like his and hers, neither of which needs an. Josseybass also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Grammar checkers will not help you much with your apostrophes. Grammar worksheet all things grammar grammar focus possessive pronouns level intermediate answer key my notes 1. The meaning intended is that the key terms belonging to the theory need defining apostrophe of possession not apostrophe of omission. In february 2014, a new edition of the blue book of grammar and punctuation will be issued. Apostrophe english grammar today cambridge dictionary.
In fact, for some of these pronouns, adding an apostrophe forms a contraction instead of a possessive see the table. English grammar exercises online with answers pdf on this page you will find various free grammar worksheets of increasing difficulty that can be completed directly online, or at home theyll help you to put into practice all the key notions of the english grammar previously shown in the grammar lessons part of the website, and if you are a beginner you can. The problem nearly always seems to stem from not understanding that the apostrophe has two very different and very important uses in english. In that sentence, the verb do is used as a plural noun, and the apostrophe was added because the writer felt that dos was confusing. Punctuate the following sentences with apostrophes according to the rules for using the apostrophe. Its in example l is short form of it is and should not be confused with its. Why does the apostrophe go on the end of the following. Hers, yours, ours, its, theirs, whose, and oneself. To form the possessive of a singular noun, add an apostrophe and an s. The confusion among english language speakers arises because we assume that we must have an apostrophe when talking of something belonging to someone or something. Apostrophes are also used in contractions two words.
Possessive contraction pronoun adverb is its its you are. For a printerfriendly pdf version of this guide, click here. Its grammar and punctuation grammar blog blue book of. Showing possession with an apostrophe and often an added s reduces the word count. The man said that its, its too hot to play baseball. Laura mcclure gives a refresher on when to use apostrophes in writing. Apostrophes apostrophes usually indicate possession. This answer book may be used in conjunction with the. Time and measurement apostrophes indicate time value and measurement in certain uses. Wc punctuating with apostrophes university of new england. Our neighbors car is an old chrysler, and i told him the other day that its just about to. This section shows you the differences between its and its, and why you might find them confusing. What information can we assume about a noun if we know that its possessive form ends in s. Later sansserif typefaces had stylised apostrophes with a more geometric or simplified form, but usually retaining the same directional bias as a closing quotation mark.
How to write a book how to write a short story how to write for children how to write a memoir how to blog. The possessive form is used with nouns referring to people, groups of people, countries, and animals. To see if you need to make a possessive, turn the phrase around and make it an of the. Do not use an apostrophe to form the possessive of its, whose, hers, his, ours, yours, or theirs. Personal pronouns and the apostrophe not a single personal pronoun has an apostrophe in it. The short answer to the problem of where to put the apostrophe for plurals is if there is one thing, the apostrophe is before the s, if more than one, after the s. Apostrophes and possession grade 2 punctuation worksheet. It shows a relationship of belonging between one thing and another. Finding the answers you are looking for is a simple task if you follow the chapter headings, unit headings and page references in this answer book. Do not use an apostrophe with possessive personal pronouns. Its indicates possession but it does not have an apostrophe after it. However, with single lowercase letters, it is advisable to use apostrophes. Whos the partys candidate for vice president this year.
A simple way to remember this rule is the fact that you dont use an apostrophe for the possesives his or hers, so dont do it with its. In english, the apostrophe plus s forms the possessive singular of all nouns and the possessive plural of all nouns not ending in s. The book, common sense or more specifically the authorship of the book, belongs equally to lederer and shore, so only the second name, shore, takes the apostrophe and s. Add only an apostrophe for plural possessive nouns ending in s. Apostrophes with words ending in s grammar and punctuation. Do not use an apostrophe in carts because it is plural, not possessive. To indicate individual possession of a noun by more than one person or object, use an apostrophe with each individual.
Grammarquizzes more writing aids punctuation apostrophes. Distribute copies of the grammar workshop pages found at the beginning of each chapter for students to refer to as they complete the activities in this book. If the noun is plural, the possessive form becomes s and apostrophe. Nov 04, 2010 the punctuation mark is called apostrophe. There is no logic in this but its a mistake to expect language to be logical. When the time noun is plural, the apostrophe comes after the s. When a singular name ends in s, add only an apostrophe unless common pronunciation dictate otherwise. Sometimes, its called the grocers apostrophe because of how frequently it is spotted in grocery store advertisements 3 oranges for a dollar. Indeed the oed reports that its was as we would expect formed from it and the possessive or genitive s. How many apostrophes in the following sentence are parts of possessives. Possessive contraction pronoun adverb is its its you are you. Without an apostrophe, its is a possessive pronoun. Apostrophes an apostrophe is primarily used as part of a word with the letter s to show possession or to indicate that letters in a contraction have been omitted. With very few exceptions, apostrophes do not make nouns plural.
The relative possessive pronoun whose is also frequently the victim of apostrophe abuse. A contraction is a shortened form of a word or group of words that omits certain letters or sounds. The horses hooves the hansons house the students papers. My cousins grades in m is not the same as my cousins grades. The rule 2 of apostrophes referenced in our response of december 18, 2012, to maddie was part of the 10th edition of the blue book of grammar and punctuation. This is wrong because its is an example of an apostrophe of omission. Care must be taken to place the apostrophe outside the word in question. The same goes with any proper noun which ends in s like marcuss bottle.
Buy our book smashing grammar 2019 written by the founder of grammar monster, smashing grammar includes a glossary of grammar essentials from apostrophes to zeugma and a chapter on easily confused words from affecteffect to whetherif. The fox had its right foreleg caught securely in the traps jaws. Encourage your students not to use contractions in formal academic writing, unless they are writing dialogue or consciously using an informal. If we write javiers license with an apostrophe, why do we write its license without an apostrophe. His, hers, its, my, mine, yours, ours, theirs are all possessive pronouns. The leashes for the dogs the dogs leashes the grades of the students the students grades the wages earned by the workers. Rules for finding and fixing apostrophe errors grammar bytes. Choose the correct evaluation of each underlined word. Its quiz from the blue book of grammar and punctuation. It was just ten minutes walk from my house to my office.
In fact it means grades of my cousins and it is plural so we use the plural possessive pronoun theirs. The apostrophe in contractions the most common use of apostrophes in english is for contractions, where a. This is possibly why the difference between its and its causes so many problems. Download english grammar lessons, for free, in the pdf format feel free to download, reuse, or share the following english grammar lessons with your friends, colleagues, or students. If there are more than one errors, separate corrected words with a space and a hyphen as in the examples. The apostrophe probably causes more grief than all of the other punctuation marks put together. Possessive determiners and pronouns do not have an apostrophe i. Each entry starts with a simple explanation and basic examples before moving to reallife, entertaining examples. This book from the popular linguist david crystal will amuse and instruct.
Apostrophes the blue book of grammar and punctuation. Punctuation 9 misuses of apostrophes do not use the apostrophe to form plurals. The eleventh edition of the blue book of grammar and punctuation. Have students work on some of the activities in collaborative groups. Apostrophes are not used for possessive pronouns or for noun plurals, including acronyms. Choose the rules and the order of use that are appropriate to the needs of. Apostrophes are not used to indicate something belonging to it. In a contraction, an apostrophe represents missing letters. Its, without an apostrophe, is a possessive form, where an apostrophe is usually required. For me, writing an essay involves at least an hours work. Helpful marginal notes throughout the books have been provided to reinforce existing skills and call attention to common problem areas.
If the name is james and there is something which belongs to him like a bottle, it would be jamess bottle. Possessive apostrophes are used to indicate that something belongs to a person or thing. Apr 12, 2012 the rule 2 of apostrophes referenced in our response of december 18, 2012, to maddie was part of the 10th edition of the blue book of grammar and punctuation. The blue book of grammar and punctuation an easytouse guide with clear rules, realworld examples. Most singular possessives are formed by adding an apostrophe and s. As a general rule, if the possessive noun is an inanimate object not living, no causal agency then no apostrophe is needed. The only time its has an apostrophe is when it is a contraction for it is or it has. Jul 27, 2015 and its sometimes tricky when it comes to its usage. For this special word, its means it is or it has, and ownership or possession is expressed by its without the apostrophe. The students book if a singular noun ends with an s or z sound. Apostrophe use can affect how sentences are read and understood. She was told to circle all the 5s in toms history book.
The apostrophe indicates a possessive in a singular noun. We wish you every success in your pursuit of english proficiency. The tractable apostrophe pages 3567 do not take the apostrophe s talent for adaptability for granted. The following sentences are punctuated with apostrophes according to the rules for using the apostrophe. Ours should have an apostrophe between the r and s. Each entry starts with a simple explanation and basic examples before moving to real.
Its your, yours, hers, its, ours, their, and theirs, that tend to cause the confusion. Students can bind these pages together and add a cover to make a handy mini grammar reference book. When it comes to it, it is, its, and its, the real difficulties with apostrophes rear their heads. Remember that the apostrophe placement depends on whether there is more than one noun. If the noun is plural and ends in s, add only an apostrophe. This form was inherited by the typographic apostrophe, also known as the typeset apostrophe, or, informally, the curly apostrophe. Looking for a signs of wear to disqualify the issue as mint, sheldon inspected the comic b booksc corners and spine. To show possession, we use its without an apostrophe. Download english grammar lessons, for free, in the pdf format. It explains the main rules for its use, and gives examples of commonly encountered problems. Most genitives are formed with s the term genitive includes a larger range of relationships than possessiveownership my dog, temporary possession his cookie, a natural trait his tail, a family relationship his mom, origin his city, performer of an action his arrival, and.
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