The apostrophe is used in English to indicate what is, for historical reasons, misleadingly called the possessive case in the English language. … If you want to know more about using apostrophes with names, this page will guide you. Please advise where the apostrophe "s" should be for name Gladys... i.e. … Possessive apostrophe. Plurals not ending in -s keep the -'s marker: children's toys, the men's toilet. (The best flavor is chocolate chip cookie dough.) (a person’s last name). It can be tricky to address a plural family if their last name ends in an S, X, Z, CH, or SH. Ange is a singular noun, the name of a person, so we just add an apostrophe S to the end of her name which becomes Ange’s. What to Know. You can make the plural form simply by adding an s without change the y. The … Use an apostrophe after the s to indicate collective ownership. "If you must announce possession, place the apostrophe after the plural names — the Smiths', The Gumps' and The Joneses'." There’s an exception that doesn’t follow the rule for names and other proper names ending with y. Apostrophes show possession. Let’s look at these apostrophe rules with examples of each one in action. Apostrophes on Singular Nouns. You are addressing the entire family (a plural), not something they possess. By the time you finish reviewing this quick guide, you’ll know when to use this … The biggest mistake that I see when writing an address on a card is the improper use of the apostrophe. Rule: To show the plural of a name that ends in s, ch, or z, add es. If the possessive involves a last name ending with "s" or "z," you can add either. One after another, I notice the same issues with use of apostrophes in last names. Sometimes, “apostrophe confusion” is more apparent than reading weather reports during an extreme cold snap. However, for names you do put the apostrophe-s. Apostrophes for possession. This is a good question, as this is something that even native english speakers often … Diogenes’s philosophy . Personal names are a case in point, as people tend to have possessions and possessions generally demand apostrophes. Why? As a rule of thumb, adding the s to the apostrophe is a good idea: for example, the chateaux’s imposing walls or Marx’s impressive beard. When signing your family's holiday cards this season, disabuse yourself of the notion that adding an apostrophe to your last name "looks right" or "makes sense." There’s still another way, probably the most elegant of them all. But what if the name is Sanchez or Church or Williams? For proper names, you add the apostrophe-s to the end. Never put the apostrophe before or after the ‘s’. These rules mean you should write out any last name in full, whether it’s Williams or Garcia, and simply tack something onto the end—again, no apostrophe necessary. Maybe you know to write I met the Smiths, I drove Brenda Smith's Ferrari, and I visited the Smiths' house. Alexandre Dumas’s novels. You cannot add an apostrophe before an “s” when the surname ends in “s.” For instance, do not make the name “Andrews” possessive by putting the apostrophe between the “w” and the “s” (Andrew’s). An apostrophe + “s” goes after a family name only if you’re forming a possessive. When in doubt, we like to use "The Smith Family". If you want possessive of pluralized family name, you need to pluralize the first and simply make name possessive using the apostrophe. The Willies’ house was robbed last night. Other examples: “the people’s choice,” … When two or more nouns possess the same thing, add an apostrophe plus -s to the last noun listed, as in: Ben and Jerry's Cherry Garcia ice cream; Emma and Nicole's school project (Emma and Nicole worked together on the same project.) What you only need to do is to add apostrophes in plurals such as … As for what to tack on, usually you only have to add an s to the end of their entire last name—even if the last letter is y. Apostrophe rules can be broken into four main categories. When you’re talking about one thing that multiple people own together, only the final name gets an apostrophe + s: Ben & Jerry’s ice cream is delicious. Kalli. Because apostrophes are a punctuation mark designed to show possession—as in, when something belongs to something else, like a dog’s bone or a monkey’s banana. (correct) Some styles may allow you to add only an apostrophe: Athens’ history, Diogenes’ philosophy, Dumas’ novels. In the past adding an s may have seemed very clumsy. Any family name w ith “the” in front is going to end in “s,” so that’s where the apostrophe will always go: the Browns’ terrier, the Smiths’ porch, the Johnsons’ SUV, the Rodriguezes’ party, the Chans’ flat-screen TV. Comments . The Smiths' (with an apostrophe after the s) is plural possessive and … Learn where to insert apostrophes to make last names plural. Some might say that you … Is that your friend’s bike? Instead, you're making your last name plural to indicate that the card is from all of your family … (Here, the singular proper noun “Johnson” has an s added at the end, so that it becomes the plural word “Johnsons” and … For most nouns you just need to add an apostrophe and an s to show that something belongs to a person or thing. When indicating the possessive, if there is more than one owner add an apostrophe to the plural; if there is one owner, add 's to the singular (The Smiths' car vs. Smith's car). If you’re ever in a pickle about holiday card grammar, we can help. Here's why. Also add only an apostrophe for proper names when the name is plural but the entity is singular: the United States’ policy on China. This case was … We went to Ange’s house last night. To show the possession, add an apostrophe after the plural form. Apostrophe S After A Name Ending In S? It depends on the meaning that Zissman intended. Notice that not every proper name uses an apostrophe. If you wanted to reference their dog, you'd say "the Williamses' dog." Making a last name plural should never involve an apostrophe. The bike that belongs to your friend. Because all the Smarts (presumably) own the boat, you add the apostrophe after the "s." If the family's last name ends in "s," make it plural before adding an apostrophe. Example 1: Sam and Mary Johnson live in a large house with their two daughters Rachel and Jenna Johnson; the Johnsons’ large house is near here. If the last name seems awkward to say that way, … A~~~~~Only when it’s plural-possessive. The Biggest Mistake When Addressing a Card or Envelope . Apostrophes with Names Ending in s, ch, or z. Cassie Tuttle on January 19, 2011 5:55 pm For instance, if you wanted to discuss the Williams family, they would become "the Williamses" in a plural sense. Both of Gladys's sweater and Gladys' … Are we talking about a hypothetical, generic baker, an Everybaker who could use this toolkit? If you’re talking about something that belongs to him, always add apostrophe “s.” For example, … Dog is a singular noun so we just put … Ever. The possessive apostrophe. Put the apostrophe after the last letter (the “s,” in this case): the Parkers’ new terrier. Ange’s house means the house belongs to Ange. For example, the plural of Jones is Joneses, and the plural of Smith is Smiths. Names are pluralized like regular words. What do the rules of English grammar and punctuation say about Bakers Toolkit? To indicate ownership, English language speakers learn when to add an … (incorrect) The Willys’ house was robbed last night. If it’s singular, whether a surname or first name, it should be apostrophe + “s.” I don’t care whether it’s James or John, Jones or Smith. Note also how an … The logic is that all names should be treated the same. But although this rule seems straightforward, one thing that trips up many writers is how to form possessives when the name being used ends with an s. For example, should you use “Adams’ (2013) work” or “Adams’s … eg Mary Hodges’ books. Examples: The Sanchezes will be over soon. For example: Smiths’ car, Joneses’ home. Add -es for names ending in "s" or "z" and add -s for everything else. Where is the dog’s bone? Apostrophes are correctly used in names only to show the possessive ( or genitive) case, for example Russ's car is here; or This is the Joneses' house. Last names ending in s are no different. Most nouns ending in s are pluralized by adding es. If you are pluralizing the family name to indicate multiple individual members, no apostrophe is used. The apostrophe after last names. You're not trying to make your last name possessive, which is what adding an apostrophe does (the Smith's). Do you put an apostrophe after a last name that ends in “s”? As in, “I went to see the Andersons last night. To make plurals of surnames, add the ending –es to those surnames which end with –s, for other surnames use the ending –s. Apostrophes don’t belong in your last name on a Christmas card. Apostrophes are not used to make words plural.On Christmas cards, when we write, “Love, The Nelsons,” or “From the Smiths,” we are simply … Are you confused about how to show the plural and the possessive of certain names? I don’t think that I’m revealing a big grammar secret by letting you know that the possessive of a singular name is formed by adding an apostrophe and an s (e.g., Smith’s, 2012, study). Apostrophes after the letter S. Rule 1: When a plural noun ends in s, place an apostrophe after the s to show possession. For other nouns, you'd put just an apostrophe at the end, so if you had a bunch of cats and they had beds, you say that those are the cats' beds, or if your parents shared a car, you would say it is your parents' car. The biggest mistake in addressing a card is using an apostrophe in the last name of the recipient. Only use an apostrophe with last names ending in ‘s’ when they show possession. On a return address is using an apostrophe on a last name: The Smiths is plural for "Smith" and means there is more than one person named Smith and the invitation is from them all. For example, if we have own mother who has a baby, the rule of having an apostrophe before the s works: The mother has a baby; It is a mother’s baby; However, what happens if multiple mothers have babies? This applies to last names as well. The rule needs to change to … The solution was to use an apostrophe after the plural s (as in girls' dresses). While the above rules work for when a single person owns something, it doesn’t work when there are many people. Gladys's sweater or Gladys' sweater. However, style guides are now pointing in that direction, even ones in the US where ideas … The members of the Edwards and Doss families are the Edwardses and the Dosses, … Usually, if the last name is ending with hard “z”, you will not add “-es” or “s”. Read on to discover all the apostrophe rules you'll ever need to know! In MLA style, proper nouns ending in s that are singular follow the general rule and add ’s : Athens’s history. Confused? When you’re talking about multiple things, where each thing belongs to someone else, both names get an … (Are you Team Ross or Team Rachel?) If I’m talking about our family I would refer to The Hodges – perhaps not strictly correct but easier to say and write than Hodgeses! That is changing the spelling of “Andrews.” A … The members of the Johnson and Smith families, for instance, are the Johnsons and the Smiths, not the Johnson’s and the Smith’s. Thank you so much! For example: the Smith family becomes the Smiths, the Angelo family becomes the Angelos, the Perry family becomes the … It's not right, and it doesn't. We are talking about one friend (a singular noun) and his or her bike. The first rule—the most important thing to remember when working with surnames—is DO NOT EVER change a person’s name. To shorten decades, replace the century with an apostrophe and add an ‘s’ at the end of the number. b. Mar 17 2006 23:58:03. anonymous; 1 2 3. No apostrophes for simple plural names or names ending in ... omitted in common expressions such as ”at arm’s length” and “at wits’ end.” Note that the position of the apostrophe before or after the S depends on whether the word is a plural form ending in S. You hold someone at the length of your arm (singular), but are at the end of your wits (plural). Forums Grammar & Sentence Structure 0 71,896 + 0. Ross and Rachel’s breakup divided fans. Classically, it is not correct to just add an apostrophe to a last name that already ends in “s” if it is singular possessive. However, this was not universally accepted until the mid-19th century. The apostrophe is especially important when you are writing about A's, I's, and U's because without the apostrophe readers could easily think you are writing the words “as,” “is,” and “us.” (That reminded me of what we talked about last week with single letters being referred to with the phrase “per se” when they were being used as a word instead of a letter, like “I, per se I” to mean the word “I.”) As someone with a surname ending in s, I usually add an apostrophe after the s to indicate possession. If we can trust Punxsutawney Phil, the end of these sub-zero temperatures should be near…but in case a groundhog isn’t your first choice for meteorological – or grammatical – advice, let’s cover the basics with examples inspired by fellow grammar-guru Kathleen Watson . The Smith's (with an apostrophe before the s) is the possessive of "Smith" and indicates one person ownership. I have looked at this for so long that neither is making sense right now. One of my Twitter followers asked me about this story last week, so we’re going to talk about apostrophes, plural nouns, and brand names. '' and indicates one person ownership discuss the Williams family, they become. To ange her bike s house apostrophe after last name the house belongs to ange have seemed very clumsy in. If the name is Sanchez or Church or Williams way, probably the most elegant of them.! Only an apostrophe and add -s for everything else be broken into four main categories his or bike. 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