What is an Apostrophe?
Apostrophes are punctuation marks that are primarily used to show possession and to indicate missing letters in a contracted word.
Examples of Apostrophes
Rules for Apostrophes that Show Possession
To show possession of a singular noun, simply place an apostrophe and an -s to the end of the word:
Tyrone‘s bicycle, the pencil‘s eraser, the dog‘s collar
To show possession of a plural noun that already ends with an -s, simply place an apostrophe at the end of the word:
four cats‘ litter boxes, two babies‘ cribs, three teachers‘ gradebooks
To show possession of a plural noun that does not end with an -s, simply place an apostrophe and an -s at the end of the word:
two women‘s notebooks, four children‘s crayons, three geese‘s feathers
Rules for Apostrophes to Indicate Missing Letters
An apostrophe is used to indicate the placement of missing letters in a contracted word:
cannot > can’t
do not > don’t
I will > I’ll
is not > isn’t
Plural Forms of Letters and Numbers
An apostrophe is used to form the plural of a number or letter.
Mind your p’s and q’s.
There are two 7’s in my phone number.
She received all A’s on her report card.
Once you have a solid understanding of apostrophes, learn when to use apostrophes with individual ownership vs. joint ownership!
Download a Free Worksheet on the Basic Rules of Apostrophes!
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