When should an apostrophe be used for possessive nouns?

When should an apostrophe be used for possessive nouns?

• A. To show ownership; e.g., the dog's bone.
• B. To indicate plurals.
• C. To mark quotations.
• D. To show past tense.

Answer: (A)

Ownership is shown with an apostrophe. When a noun belongs to someone, we mark that relationship with 's. For a singular owner, add 's: the dog's bone means the bone belongs to the dog. If the owner is plural and ends in s, place the apostrophe after the s: the dogs' bone (one bone owned by several dogs) or the dogs' bones (multiple bones owned by them). For irregular plurals, use 's: children's toys, men's hats. Apostrophes aren’t used to form plurals, to mark quotations, or to indicate past tense—those are handled in other ways. Contractions involve apostrophes too, but that’s a different use from showing possession.

Ownership is shown with an apostrophe. When a noun belongs to someone, we mark that relationship with 's. For a singular owner, add 's: the dog's bone means the bone belongs to the dog. If the owner is plural and ends in s, place the apostrophe after the s: the dogs' bone (one bone owned by several dogs) or the dogs' bones (multiple bones owned by them). For irregular plurals, use 's: children's toys, men's hats. Apostrophes aren’t used to form plurals, to mark quotations, or to indicate past tense—those are handled in other ways. Contractions involve apostrophes too, but that’s a different use from showing possession.