Apostrophes and plurals

We would argue that, above all else, it is the humble apostrophe that creates the most confusion in punctuation.

The apostrophe has just two purposes:

1. It indicates possession—Amanda’s shoe, the boss’s desk or the donkey’s tail.
2. It indicates omission—can not to can’t , will not to won’t, it is to it’s. These are called contractions.

Apostrophes do not, under any circumstances, make a word into a plural. Plurals are created by adding s or es to the end of a word. For example:

• Apple does not become apple’s—it becomes apples.
• DVD does not become DVD’s—it becomes DVDs.
• Friday does not become Friday’s—it becomes Fridays.
• Princess does not become princess’s—it becomes princesses.

The apostrophe should also never be used after a decade. It is incorrect to say 90’s. You can, however, use the apostrophe to indicate that you have dropped off the 19 at the beginning, so it reads ’90s.

We will happily discuss writing, language, punctuation and grammar at any time. Please email us if you have a topic you’d like us to cover.