Apostrophes and Possessives: A Simple Guide

The apostrophe is small, but it causes a great deal of confusion. Yet there are only two main jobs, and once you know them, most problems disappear.

Job 1: showing possession

An apostrophe shows that something belongs to someone.

Singular nouns: add 's.

• the dog's bone
• my sister's house
• the teacher's desk

Plural nouns ending in s: add just an apostrophe.

• the dogs' bones (more than one dog)
• the teachers' room
• my parents' house

Plural nouns not ending in s: add 's.

• the children's toys
• the men's department
• people's opinions

Job 2: contractions

An apostrophe shows where letters have been left out.

• it's = it is or it has
• don't = do not
• can't = cannot
• I'm = I am
• they're = they are
• who's = who is or who has
• you're = you are
• let's = let us

Words that never take an apostrophe for possession

Possessive pronouns don't use apostrophes:

• its (not it's), as in The dog wagged its tail.
• whose (not who's), as in Whose bag is this?
• your, yours, their, theirs, ours, hers, his

Test: if you can replace it with it is or it has, use it's. Otherwise, use its.

No apostrophes for ordinary plurals

• ✗ apple's for sale → ✓ apples for sale
• ✗ two banana's → ✓ two bananas
• ✗ the 1990's → ✓ the 1990s
• ✗ CD's → ✓ CDs

The "greengrocer's apostrophe" is a famous error.

Names ending in s

Both forms are accepted:

• James's book or James' book
• Charles's car or Charles' car

Choose one style and stay consistent. If you say the extra s aloud, write 's.

Joint and separate possession

• Joint: Tom and Mary's house (they own it together).
• Separate: Tom's and Mary's cars (each has a car).

Time and quantity

• a day's work, two weeks' notice, a month's salary

Double possessives

• a friend of my sister's
• a picture of Tom's

Common mistakes

• Your welcome → You're welcome
• Its raining → It's raining
• The cat licked it's paws → its paws
• Childrens' toys → Children's toys
• Ladie's → Ladies' (plural)

Quick checking routine

1. Is something missing? If letters are left out, use an apostrophe.
2. Does something belong to someone? Use 's or s'.
3. Is it just a plural? No apostrophe.
4. Is it a possessive pronoun? No apostrophe.

Practice

Correct these: "The childrens toys were on the floor." "Its a lovely day and the birds are singing their hearts out." "My parents house is near the shops."

Check grammar-related word forms with English Dictionary →