ࡱ> >@=#` bjbj 4.@@@@\<$h!T }.@0u^puuf( d $  Apostrophes Apostrophes are the second most commonly tested punctuation mark on the English Test. Apostrophes primarily indicate possession, but they also take the place of omitted letters in contractions (for example, was not becomes wasnt and it is becomes its). You will be tested chiefly on your knowledge of the apostrophes possessive function. The Possessive and Singular Nouns A singular noun (for example: Simon, the dog, the bottle) can be made possessive by adding an apostrophe followed by an s. For example, Simons teacher was in the room. My mom forgot the dogs food. We removed the bottles label. The apostrophe follows directly after the noun. If you move the apostrophe after the s (for example, if you write dogs rather than dogs), you will change the meaning of the sentence (see The Possessive and Plural Nouns below). If you forget the apostrophe altogether, you will render the sentence meaningless. The Possessive and Plural Nouns Most plural nouns (for example: the boys, the dogs, the bottles) can be made possessive by adding only an apostrophe. For example, The boys teacher was in the room. My mom forgot the dogs food. We removed the bottles labels. The apostrophe directly follows plural nouns that end in s to make them possessive. But for plural nouns that do not end in s (for example, women), you should treat the plural form as a singular noun (i.e., add an apostrophe followed by an s). Forexample, The womens locker room needs to be cleaned. The Possessive and Multiple Nouns Sometimes youll want to indicate the possessive of more than one noun (Nick and Nora, Dan and Johann). The placement of the apostrophe depends on whether the possessors share the possession. For example, Nick and Noras dog solves crimes. Dan and Johanns socks are dirty. In the example of Nick and Nora, the dog belongs to both of them, so you treat Nick and Nora as a single unit, followed by a single apostrophe and s. In the second example, both Dan and Johann have dirty socks, but they dont share the same dirty socks, so you treat Dan and Johann as separate units, giving each an apostrophe and s. The Possessive and Pronouns Unlike nouns and proper nouns, the possessive case of pronouns does not use an apostrophe. The following chart gives you nominative pronouns (the ones you use as subjects) and the corresponding possessive pronouns: I my we our you your they their she her it its he his who whose For example, The dog chewed on its tail. You should give him your wallet. Dont confuse the its and the your above with its and youre. This mistake is frequently tested on the English Test (see below). Its/Its, Their/Theyre The ACT will test you on your ability to distinguish between its and its. Its is the possessive form of it. Its is the contraction of it is. This can be tricky to remember, since you are normally trained to associate apostrophes with possession. But when youre dealing with its versus its, the apostrophe signals a contraction. The same is true for their/theyre/there, your/youre, and whose/whos. Make sure you are aware of these exceptions to the apostrophe rule of possession. Try the following practice problem:  INCLUDEPICTURE "http://img.sparknotes.com/trans.gif" \* MERGEFORMATINET Your face is red. 9 9.A.NO CHANGEB.Youre faceC.Your noseD.OMIT the underlined portion. You can eliminate choices C and D immediately: C changes the meaning of the sentence for no particular reason, and D leaves you without a complete sentence. The decision comes down to Your and Youre. If you dont know the correct answer, try replacing Youre with You are. The resulting sentence is You are face is redan odd remark. The correct answer is A, NO CHANGE. 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