Many people are confused when it comes to the use of this punctuation mark, so I thought I'd do a quick post on the rules to help people writing website content.

By following the guidelines below you can gain an understanding of when and why the use of the apostrophe punctuation mark is applicable. There are two main reasons to use an apostrophe: To show possession To show an omission People often become confused when it comes to the use of an apostrophe with it’s (using an apostrophe) and its (without the use of an apostrophe).  The difference between the two, and when they are applicable, is also discussed below.

An apostrophe to show omission

An apostrophe is often used to show the omission of letters or numbers. Below are some examples of the most common uses of an apostrophe to signify the omission of letters: I’m – the apostrophe shows the omission of the ‘a’ in ‘I am’ He’ll – the apostrophe indicates the omission of the ‘wi’ in ‘he will’ She’d – the apostrophe indicates the missing letters from either ‘she had’ or ‘she would’ Pick ‘n’ mix – the apostrophes indicates the missing ‘a’ and ‘d’ from ‘pick and mix’ It’s cold – the apostrophes signifies the missing ‘i’ from ‘it is cold’ Didn’t – the apostrophe shows the omission of the ‘o’ from ‘did not’ An apostrophe can also be used t show the intentional absence of numbers. For example: The Olympic Games were held in Beijing in the summer of ‘08

The use of its and it’s

These two short words often cause a lot of confusion, with many people unsure of whether to use an apostrophe or not. Below are some simple rules to follow that will ensure you know when the use of an apostrophe is required and when it is not. Its Without an apostrophe the word means belonging to it. The lion opened its mouth The parrot stretched its wings It’s An apostrophe is included to show the omission of letters from ‘it is’ or ‘it has’ It’s hot today. It’s been an eventful afternoon. It’s a modern car and it’s a lot of gadgets

Plural forms and the use of an apostrophe

In general, an apostrophe should not be used to show the plurals of nouns, dates using numbers or abbreviations. In most cases you should just add an ‘s’ or an ‘es’ if the noun being used requires and ‘es’ to form its plural form. Some examples are shown below. pound – pounds (the total cost of the tickets for the show is 40 pounds) doughnut – doughnuts (she buys a tray of 12 doughnuts) banana – bananas (bananas are a good source of potassium) 1980 – 1980s (she grew up in the 1980s) There are only a couple of occasions when it is acceptable to include an apostrophe to indicate the plural form of something, for the purpose of clarity.

The use of an apostrophe to show the plural form of individual letters

I have crossed the t’s and dotted the i’s. Find all of the s’s in the word Mississippi. An apostrophe can also be used to show the plural form of individual numbers. Find all of the number 8’s.