Apostrophes: A Simple Guide to Getting Them Right

Apostrophes may be tiny but they pack a punch. These little punctuation marks cause more confusion than almost any other aspect of English grammar, yet they follow fairly straightforward rules. Let's clear up the mystery once and for all.

What Do Apostrophes Actually Do?

Apostrophes have three main jobs in English writing, and understanding these will help you use them correctly every time.

1. Showing Possession

When something belongs to someone or something, we use an apostrophe to show that relationship. For singular nouns, add an apostrophe and an 's':

1. The bee's knees (the knees belonging to the bee)

2. Ross's book (the book belonging to Ross)

3. The company's policy (the policy of the company)

For plural nouns that already end in 's', just add an apostrophe after the 's':

1. The boys' toys (toys belonging to multiple boys)

2. The artists' paintbrushes (paintbrushes belonging to multiple artists)

3. The Crows' house (the house belonging to the Crow family)

For plural nouns that don't end in 's', add an apostrophe and an 's':

1. The children's games

2. The women's rights

3. The people's choice

2. Creating Contractions

Contractions are shortened forms of words where letters have been removed. The apostrophe shows where those missing letters would be:

1. Don't (do not)

2. Can't (cannot)

3. It's (it is or it has)

4. You're (you are)

5. They're (they are)

6. We've (we have)

3. Forming Plurals of Letters and Numbers (Sometimes)

This use is less common, and style guides differ on when it's necessary. Generally, you might use an apostrophe to form plurals of lowercase letters to avoid confusion:

1. Mind your p's and q's

2. Dot your i's and cross your t's

For capital letters and numbers, most style guides now recommend no apostrophe:

1. She got three As on her report card

2. The 1990s were a great decade

The Most Common Mistakes

Its vs It's

This trips up even experienced writers. Here's the simple rule: "it's" always means "it is" or "it has". If you can't replace it with those phrases, you need "its" (no apostrophe).

1. It's raining today. (It is raining today.)

2. The dog wagged its tail. (You can't say "the dog wagged it is tail")

Your vs You're

"You're" means "you are". If you can't substitute "you are", use "your":

1. You're going to love this. (You are going to love this.)

2. Is this your coat? (You can't say "Is this you are coat?")

   

Plural Apostrophes (The Greengrocer's Apostrophe)

Never use an apostrophe to make a word plural. This mistake is so common it has a name: the greengrocer's apostrophe, named after the signs you might see in shops.

Wrong: Apple's for sale, DVD's £5 each Right: Apples for sale, DVDs £5 each

The only time you're making something plural is when there's no possession or contraction involved. Just add 's' or 'es'.

Names Ending in S

There's some flexibility here, but the most widely accepted modern rule is to add apostrophe-s to all singular names, even those ending in 's':

1. Charles's dog

2. James's car

3. Mr Jones's office

Some style guides allow just an apostrophe for classical or biblical names (Jesus' disciples, Moses' staff), but for modern names, apostrophe-s is standard.

Quick Test

Before you use an apostrophe, ask yourself:

1. Am I showing possession? (Add 's or s')

2. Am I making a contraction? (Put the apostrophe where letters are missing)

3. Am I just making a plural? (No apostrophe needed!)

Final Thoughts

Apostrophes might seem tricky, but they follow predictable patterns. Once you understand their three main uses, possessives, contractions and occasional plurals of letters, you'll find them much easier to handle. Take a moment to think about what you're trying to express, and you'll get it right every time.

Remember, when in doubt, ask yourself whether you're showing ownership or creating a shortened form. If neither applies, you probably don't need an apostrophe at all.