Maybe the reason I love punctuation so much is that I think of each mark as a character. Well, I guess it is a “character,” technically, but I think of it as a person. A superhero or ancient god or goddess. I am constantly creating a mythology of punctuation.
So, in the interest of spreading the love of punctuation, I offer up the first installment of a series on the powers of each little mark.
The mighty apostrophe has a very specific and limited set of abilities. She is frequently misunderstood and sparks mischief in word processors all over the world in retaliation. She is rigid and unyielding, slinky and sassy as the mood strikes her. She can bring other characters together by force; she can strike them out of the text entirely if she pleases. She lives alone in a secluded cave but can frequently be seen haughtily stalking through the villages nearby.
Enough mythology; let’s look at what the apostrophe can do in the real world.
POSSESSION
If you want to say that something belongs to someone (or to something else), you might need an apostrophe (and, generally, her only friend, the letter “s”).
Eat Jim’s pizza.
The pizza belongs to Jim or originated from Jim in some way.
Note that (except in very rare circumstances, outlined in another section below) you should not use an apostrophe to make something plural. How do you know whether something is plural or possessive? Just ask yourself whether the word (or noun phrase, like "your family" in the photo below) in question could be replaced by a possessive pronoun (my, our, their, his, her, its*).
Eat his pizza.
“His” is a possessive pronoun, and the sentence still works, so “Jim’s” (with the apostrophe) is correct.
The car belongs to the Smiths.
Should “Smiths” be “Smith’s”? Well, replace "the Smiths" with a possessive pronoun. If it makes sense, add the apostrophe.
The car belongs to our.
Um, no. One Smith, two Smiths, three Smiths, four. Add “s” or “es,” not a single thing more.
(It’s tempting to add an apostrophe if the singular form of the noun already ends in “s.” But this is when to add “es” instead. Keeping up with the Joneses. Apostrophe tends to get angry if you mistreat her by using her to make plurals.)
Sometimes you need to make something both plural and possessive. Do it in that order. Add “s” or “es.” Then add the apostrophe.
The Smiths’ car.
*Understandably, “its” confuses many. Just remember that there are two different words: its and it’s. The first is a possessive pronoun. The second is a contraction.
