I've talked about this before. But I'm doing it again because I just saw this article. Apparently England wants to eliminate the apostrophe because "they confuse people". My favorite quote from the article says "If I want to go to a restaurant, I don't want to have an A-level (high school diploma) in English to find it."

Honestly people. They're extremely simple.
Use an apostrophe:
To show possession on a singular word: (That is the dog's bone... The bone belongs to the dog.)
To show possession on a plural word or a word/name that ends in S: (All of the kids' lunches need to be made. OR I am going to the Sumners' house.)
To abbreviate "noun is" (Fred's going to the store... Fred IS going to the store.)

Do NOT use an apostrophe:
In a plural form of a noun (We are having taco's and burrito's for dinner. WRONG)
In a plural form an abbreviation (I have a lot of CD's. WRONG)
In possessive pronouns (Hers, ours, yours, and theirs do NOT need apostrophes. They already show possession.)
In a plural form of a number (I was born in the 1980's. WRONG)

Common Mistakes:
It's vs. its -
It's means "it is" such as "It's cold outside."
Its shows possession as in "The dog lost its bone." The word "its" already shows possession so you don't need to put an apostrophe.
Who's vs. whose -
Who's means "who is" such as "Who's coming over?"
Whose means "the one to whom it belongs" such as "Whose ball is this?" or "We need to know whose house we're going to."

THE END.

Posted in: rant, ridiculousness on Saturday, January 31, 2009 at at 9:25 AM