Posts tagged as:

apostrophe

Grammar Matters (Again)

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

Last night I writhed in agony while watching the 11 o’clock news. The local NBC affiliate was running a story about the Sacramento disc jockeys that were fired recently. (The radio personalities had sponsored a contest which led to the death of a woman.) Behind the anchorman the screen displayed DJ’s Fired. I’m sure that employees at my office are sick of hearing me say, “An apostrophe is never used to indicate a plural.” How can NBC not have someone to check what’s going to be printed in big block letters on screen? Why, NBC? Why?

“The ‘plural apostrophe’ (e.g. no dog’s allowed, sofa’s for sale) is running rampant these days, and it’s not just my imagination. It’s so wrong that I can’t even begin to fathom how anyone could make such a mistake. I hate it when people dismiss it with, ‘Oh, not everyone’s a grammar freak.’

Grammar? You think it’s an issue of grammar? I hate to break it to you, but if you can’t spell ‘dogs’, you’re illiterate.”

originally posted February 27th, 2003

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Grammar Matters

Thursday, February 27, 2003

The “plural apostrophe” (e.g. no dog’s allowed, sofa’s for sale, UGH) is running rampant these days, and it’s not just my imagination. It’s so wrong that I can’t even begin to fathom how anyone could make such a mistake. I hate it when people dismiss it with, “Oh, not everyone’s a grammar freak.”

Grammar? You think it’s an issue of grammar? I hate to break it to you, but if you can’t spell “dogs,” you’re illiterate.

via strange brew

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Hate Me for This

Friday, August 4, 2000

A quick lesson on it’s versus its:

  • it’s is a contraction of the two words “it” and “is”; if what you are trying to do is say, “it is,” and you want to do it without using that pesky middle i, use it’s
  • its is possessive; try to think about how neurotic you would be if you couldn’t have an apostrophe but people were always trying to give you one; its is what to write when you’re talking about something which is owned by something else

“Look! It’s raining!”
That car! Look at its paint job!
This blog … it’s making me sick!
His most recent post? It’s awful!
It’s the economy, stupid!
My computer? Its motherboard is screwed.

Hopefully … someone will care. It’s my goal …

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