The Apostrophe S - ('S)

Possessive Case - Genitive Case

Also called the possessive case, the genitive case is when we add apostrophe S (’s) to show possession, that something belongs to another or a type of relationship between things.
e.g. Woodward’s house, Your brother’s friend

The meaning of X’s Y is:
= The Y of X
= The Y belonging to X (Y is normally a thing)
= The Y which has some relation with X (Y is often a person)

The Rules:

We normally use the ’s with people, animals though it can also be used with places, organizations and companies (which suggest a group of people).

It is not common to use the ’s with non-living things.

1. Singular nouns

add 's (apostrophe S)

2. Plural nouns ending in –s

only add the apostrophe ' (without the S)

Notice that the pronunciation is the same for certain possessives:

You can usually distinguish whether the speaker is referring to one or two friends by listening to the context of what the speaker says.

3. Plural nouns not ending in –s:

add 's

4. Singular noun ending in –s:

It depends…
a. Most names: add  's (apostrophe S)

b. Classical or religious names: add ' (only the apostrophe)

5. Possessive nouns as part of a phrase

Sometimes more than one word/noun is a possessive. The same rules as above are still valid:

If there are two owners of something, we add 's to the final name:

But, if each person owns a car, then add 's to both names:

Notice how the verb is in plural form.

6. No Noun

If the meaning is clear, we can use the possessive without a noun after it.

Apostrophe S Summary Chart

Apostrophe S, Genitive Case, Possessive Case

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Pronunciation Rules:
See how to pronounce the S at the end of words.

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