Reading and Writing · 22 · Sentence Rules
Apostrophes
Notes
Key points
- One owner: 's — the dog's bowl.
- Plural owners ending in -s: s' — the dogs' bowls.
- Plural not ending in -s: 's — the children's books.
- Possessive pronouns never take an apostrophe: its, theirs, whose, ours.
- Contractions: the apostrophe replaces letters — it's, they're, who's.
- Plain plurals take no apostrophe, including decades: the 1990s.
Rules
One owner: 's.
The author's first novel was a hit.
The authors first novel was a hit.
Plural owners ending in -s: s'.
The two teams' coaches shook hands.
The two team's coaches shook hands.
Plural, not owning anything: no apostrophe.
The farmers sold their crops.
The farmer's sold their crops.
Common traps
- Not counting the owners: two teams → teams'; one team → team's.
- Adding an apostrophe to a plural subject: “The farmer's sold” is wrong.
SAT tip
Two questions, in order: does the word own the next noun? One owner or many? Then the apostrophe places itself.
Test yourself
10 official SAT questions on Apostrophes, easiest first.