apostrophe use

Apostrophe use refers to the conventions governing the punctuation mark that signals possession or contraction.

For possession, the apostrophe typically precedes the s for singulars the dog's bowl and follows it for plurals the dogs' bowls.

For contractions, it marks omitted letters: don't, it's, we'll.

The rules seem simple but generate endless confusion—particularly the distinction between its (possessive) and it's (contraction), and whether to add s after names ending in s: James's or James'.

Style guides disagree, and the greengrocer's apostrophe apple's for sale remains a perennial peeve.