Grammar Geek Gripe – The Apostrophe
I was trying to come up with a GREAT
topic for this month’s Guest Blog, but after seeing THREE “let’s add
apostrophe-s to make our noun a plural” signs in the past couple of weeks…
…I’m feeling a very strong need to talk
about apostrophes today.
Nothing gets under my grammar geek skin
more than an apostrophe incorrectly placed, or the wrong apostrophe-type word
used. We’ve all had conversations about there/their/they’re. In fact, a Facebook
friend tagged MoodyEdits recently in this funny:
(While it did crack me up, I couldn’t
stop myself from pointing out that the period after “Nazi” should be a comma,
and there should be a period at the end. Ha! The point, however, was nicely
made. Moving right along…)
Let’s / Lets
Last August, Old Navy reprinted thousands
of college team shirts because of an apostrophe catastrophe…
They had to, really. How would it look if
thousands of COLLEGE kids were walking around sporting grammatical errors?
(I wonder if Old Navy added an Editor to their staff after this
mishap.)
It’s / Its
Ugh… it pains me, PAINS me, to read this
sign:
I think this has to be my biggest
apostrophe-whine… using it’s for the
possessive. It’s is a contraction for
it is—nothing else—ever—under any
circumstance. If it is to be possessive, there is NO apostrophe. End of story.
Unbendable rule. Please help me spread the word.
“It’s important to put
an apostrophe in its proper place.”
(I wish the world would learn this simple sentence.)
Okay, I could go on for days …
you’re/your, who’s/whose … but you get the point. (And I know T Denise Clary’s readers
feel my pain.) So I’m going to step down off my soapbox. It’s (notice the
correct usage) a beautiful day. Let’s (there it is again) go out and enjoy it!
Be blessed!
Jen
