Apostrophes for possession
Decide first whether the owner is singular or plural, then add the apostrophe.
| Owner | Rule | Example |
|---|---|---|
| One owner | Add 's | my friend's car |
| Plural owners ending in s | Add ' after the s | my friends' cars |
| Irregular plural owners | Add 's | the children's books, women's rights |
| Name ending in s | Add 's or ' (style varies) | Charles's idea or Charles' idea |
| Time and amount | Add 's or ' as above | a day's work, three weeks' holiday |
Apostrophes in contractions
The apostrophe goes exactly where the letters are missing, not where the words meet.
| Full form | Contraction |
|---|---|
| it is / it has | it's |
| do not | don't |
| they are | they're |
| who is / who has | who's |
| you are | you're |
| will not | won't |
Where an apostrophe never goes
Ordinary plurals: "apples for sale", not "apple's for sale".
Possessive pronouns: its, yours, hers, ours, theirs and whose never take an apostrophe. Its is possessive; it's always means it is or it has. The same goes for whose (possessive) and who's (who is).
Decades and plural numbers or abbreviations: "the 1990s", "in her 20s", "three PCs". An apostrophe is used only to replace missing digits: "the '90s" stands for the 1990s.
Common mistakes
Wrong: Every country has it's own culture.
Right: Every country has its own culture.
Possessive its has no apostrophe. It's means it is.
Wrong: In the 1990's, few people had mobiles.
Right: In the 1990s, few people had mobiles.
A decade is a plural, so it takes no apostrophe.
Wrong: One of my friend's is a pilot.
Right: One of my friends is a pilot.
After one of, use a plural noun, and a plural takes no apostrophe.
Wrong: The teacher's are on strike.
Right: The teachers are on strike.
This is a plural, not a possessive.
Wrong: Who's bag is this?
Right: Whose bag is this?
Whose shows possession. Who's means who is.
Using this in IELTS and PTE
Apostrophe errors are easy to make under time pressure and count as grammar and spelling mistakes in IELTS and PTE writing. In IELTS Task 1, watch decades ("the 1980s") and plural owners ("the countries' populations"). Contractions such as don't and it's are fine in IELTS Speaking and informal letters, but most teachers advise full forms in Task 2 essays and PTE Write Essay.
5 questions
Exercise
Try each one, then open it to check your answer.
1. Choose: "The dog wagged (its / it's) tail."
its
Possession: no apostrophe.
2. Correct this: "Prices rose in the 2010's."
Prices rose in the 2010s.
No apostrophe in decades.
3. Write the possessive: the uniforms of the nurses
the nurses' uniforms
A plural owner ending in s takes an apostrophe after the s.
4. Write the contraction: they are
they're
The apostrophe replaces the a in are.
5. Choose: "(Whose / Who's) coming to dinner?"
Who's
It means who is coming.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between its and it's?+
Its shows possession: "The tree lost its leaves." It's means it is or it has: "It's raining", "It's been a long day." If you can say it is, write it's.
Is it 1990s or 1990's?+
1990s. A decade is a plural number and takes no apostrophe. Write '90s only if you drop the first two digits.
Where does the apostrophe go in a plural possessive?+
After the s for regular plurals (the students' results) and before the s for irregular plurals that don't end in s (the children's results).
Should I use contractions in IELTS Writing?+
They aren't grammatically wrong, but full forms suit the formal tone of Task 2 and academic Task 1. Contractions are natural in an informal General Training letter.
Keep going
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