Possess Your Possessives
by Beth
Ann Erickson
Sheesh. Here we
go. One of those pesky grammar rules. ARUGH!
Well sit
tight. Don’t worry.
Relax and read on. It’s not as complicated as you
think. We’ll start with “possessives.” To possess something is to “own” it. If someone owns it, you use an apostrophe. Here’s an example:
The dog’s
collar is blue.
John’s
thumb swelled.
If more
than one “someone” owns it, put your apostrophe AFTER the “s.”
Here’s an example:
I walked
into the teachers’ lounge.
I read the
writers’ handbook.
If you’re
writing about plurals (more than one object,) skip the apostrophe and just add an “s.” For example:
The dogs
ran.
His thumbs
are big.
Now…
that’s not that complicated, huh? We’ll dig a little deeper next
time.
Today,
read through some of your journal entries. Look for plurals and
possessives. Make sure you have your apostrophe in the right
place.
~~~
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