Grammar Tip for Sept. 16th

Most elementary school students learn how to form the possessive of a singular noun, whether it is a proper name or an ordinary word. You put an apostrophe followed by an "s" at the end of the word. Easy, right? Deborah's book, and Alban's heart, and Steve's philosophy. The road's condition, and the sun's light. No problems.

But what about singular nouns that end in "s" already? If I had a nickel for every time I've seen only an apostrophe after such word, I'd be publishing my own magazine and paying you all big bucks for content. The rule holds for all singular nouns, proper names or not: Add 's to form the possessive. "Julius's ice cream is very good. That circus's elephants are treated well." If you already know this, good for you! But from what I've been reading on AC, there are plenty of writers who still need to learn it.

I believe the confusion comes from the plural possessive. If you have a plural that ends in "s" then all you need is the apostrophe. "That is the Smiths' home" means the home belongs to the Smiths - the whole family. The difference between "The circus's elephants are healthy." and "The circus' elephants are healthy." is that the first sentence is about the elephants in one circus; the second is about the elephants in more than one circus. (It doesn't matter how many elephants there are....)

I'm stating the obvious here, but if a plural noun doesn't end in "s" then you must add an apostrophe and the "s." "The children's singing is beautiful." "The women's handiwork is intricate." I shouldn't need to explain this to anyone, so if everyone who reads this feels a "duh" coming on as they read the beginning of this paragraph, I'm delighted.