Introduction to the apostrophe | The Apostrophe | Punctuation | Khan Academy

TL;DR

The apostrophe can be used for contractions, to show possession, and in rare cases, to make words plural.

Transcript

• [Voiceover] Hello Grammarians Hello Paige, - [Voiceover] Hi, David. - [Voiceover] Hello apostrophe! Today we're going to start talking about a different piece of punctuation and that piece of punctuation is the apostrophe it kind of looks like a comma, but it's one that floats in the air Here's the ground, here's the word ground, And if we say Pa... Read More

Key Insights

• 💌 The apostrophe is a versatile punctuation mark that serves three main purposes: contractions, possession, and occasionally forming plural lowercase letters.
• 👻 Contractions allow us to condense two words into one, making our language more efficient.
• ❓ Possessive apostrophes indicate ownership and simplify sentences by avoiding repetitive phrasing.
• 💌 Using apostrophes to make words plural is generally incorrect, except when denoting the plural of lowercase letters.

Questions & Answers

Q: What is a contraction?

A contraction is when an apostrophe stands in for missing letters in a word. For example, "didn't" represents "did not" with the missing "o" letter.

Q: How does the apostrophe show possession?

By using an apostrophe, we can indicate that something belongs to someone. For instance, "David's cursed skull" means that the cursed skull belongs to David.

Q: Can apostrophes be used to make words plural?

Although it is generally incorrect, there's one rare case where apostrophes can be used to make words plural. It is when indicating the plural of lowercase letters, like "j's" or "i's."

Q: What are the main uses of apostrophes?

The main uses of apostrophes are contractions to make language shorter, indicating possession, and in rare cases, denoting the plural of lowercase letters.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The apostrophe can stand in for missing letters in contractions, such as "didn't" for "did not."

• It can also show possession, indicating that something belongs to someone, like "David's cursed skull."

• In rare cases, apostrophes can be used to make words plural, such as "j's" to denote multiple lowercase "j" letters.