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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 8:25:48 PM

MistressDarkArt

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quote:

ORIGINAL: RemoteUser

It's allrite, people jest get cunfused by plurels and propertys.

As for why, I'll show you by comforting you:

Their, they're, there. (It's ok.)

Touche'!

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 8:26:14 PM

RemoteUser

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quote:

ORIGINAL: MistressDarkArt

OK, this just went by on the scroll:

http://www.collarchat.com/m_4661608/mpage_1/tm.htm

Considering LOL is not really a word, was the OP of that title incorrect when he typed "LOL'ed"?

That depends on whether or not you can be FUBAR'd (Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition...ed). Popular use says yes, instead of yea.

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 8:30:14 PM

MistressDarkArt

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I can attest to being FUBAR'd from time to time, RU! And the scary part is: substances (legal or non) have nothing to do with it!

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 8:33:46 PM

playfulotter

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What bothers me more is that now when you write a sentence like "Mr. Jones's house is the best on the street" is appropriate.....what happened to just using "Jones' '"

< Message edited by playfulotter -- 3/22/2014 8:35:40 PM >

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 8:36:08 PM

MistressDarkArt

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Otter, would it not be "Mr. Jones' house?" I'm a little shaky on this part.

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 8:37:54 PM

littlewonder

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It would be Jones'

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 8:41:11 PM

playfulotter

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MistressDarkArt,

Yes...that is what I said Mr. Jones' house but saying Mr. Jones's house is right now too.....and to me it looks just wrong...

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 8:42:06 PM

littlewonder

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I think the reason that grammar is used incorrectly by those who are older is because before the advent of the internet they probably didnt write very much after they left school. But then the internet came about and now they have forgotten how to use grammar or they really never learned it to begin with. You can still go through school, be extremely bright and still not know anything.

Master and I were just talking about this this morning over brunch. I have a sister who graduated high school at the top of her class and was even valedictorian, but if you speak to her you would never, ever know that or even think that. She's the stereotypical dumb blonde. Get her online and you would barely be able to figure out what she is typing. It baffles me.

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 8:48:10 PM

MistressDarkArt

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quote:

ORIGINAL: littlewonder

It would be Jones'

Ah, yes. Sorry, my failing eyesight missed the Jones' on the first pass.

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 8:49:34 PM

DaddySatyr

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It is very confusing. Let me give an example using a word that has already come up.

quote:

If someone doesn't treat me how I deserve to be treated, it's their problem; not mine.

Usually, "their" implies plural; a group of people but not always.

The plural is "theirs" unless you're talking about one person owning something:

quote:

The lady that was sitting over there. Just left. I assume it is theirs.

My spell check tells me that the apostrophe-"s" ("their's") is incorrect. That wasn't how I learned it in the one cave school where "physical Education" was running from dinosaurs.

I'm assuming that since the word itself implies ownership, it's been decided that the possessive ('s) isn't needed? That may be more correct than how I learned it but old habits die hard.

< Message edited by DaddySatyr -- 3/22/2014 8:51:04 PM >

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 8:53:34 PM

MistressDarkArt

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quote:

ORIGINAL: DaddySatyr

quote:

The lady that was sitting over there. Just left. I assume it is theirs.

My spell check tells me that the apostrophe-"s" ("their's") is incorrect. That wasn't how I learned it in the one cave school where "physical Education" was running from dinosaurs.

That example trips me up, too. To avoid looking like a dumb*ss, I try to use "her's" or "his" instead. Which is also confusing because while "her's" ('belonging to her') makes sense, why doesn't current motif use "his's" for "his"?

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 8:54:14 PM

dcnovice

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quote:

I'm just curious what may have caused this phenomenon and why.

I've wondered about that too.

One perhaps arcane theory of mine is that apostrophes can be used to create plurals in some cases:

The Titanic sent out several SOS's.
Jack was three before he learned the ABC's.
New Mexico reportedly has more Ph.D.'s than any other state.

http://stylemanual.ngs.org/home/P/plurals (See 4.)

Seeing that, some folks seem to have concluded that apostrophes can turn any noun into a plural.

I've noticed that the apostrophe addiction is particularly fierce with unusual plurals. The Kennedys, for instance, looks odd, so people stick in an erroneous apostrophe: The Kennedy's. People also seem more likely to use apostrophes for nouns that end in vowels.

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 8:56:48 PM

MistressDarkArt

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quote:

ORIGINAL: DaddySatyr

I'm assuming that since the word itself implies ownership, it's been decided that the possessive ('s) isn't needed? That may be more correct than how I learned it but old habits die hard.

Man, don't I know! That is why I cringe left and right while reading online boards these days. S and I make a big joke out of it and send some of the more glaring booboos (booboo's?) to each other every day for a good laugh. Craigslist is notorious for this, btw!

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 9:00:19 PM

playfulotter

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What about people sending emails to others with no spaces between the end of sentence the period and the next sentence....what is up with that? Usually it is a scammer sending the email but not always.

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 9:02:22 PM

MistressDarkArt

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quote:

ORIGINAL: dcnovice

quote:

I'm just curious what may have caused this phenomenon and why.

I've wondered about that too.

One perhaps arcane theory of mine is that apostrophes can be used to create plurals in some cases:

The Titanic sent out several SOS's.
Jack was three before he learned the ABC's.
New Mexico reportedly has more Ph.D.'s than any other state.

http://stylemanual.ngs.org/home/P/plurals (See 4.)

Seeing that, some folks seem to have concluded that apostrophes can turn any noun into a plural.

I've noticed that the apostrophe addiction is particularly fierce with unusual plurals. The Kennedys, for instance, looks odd, so people stick in an erroneous apostrophe: The Kennedy's. People also seem more likely to use apostrophes for nouns that end in vowels.

So true, DC! I'm surprised more people don't go insane trying to figure this stuff out, which may explain why they don't care if it's right or wrong. For me, it's usually a 'photographic' memory thing: what I saw back in the day when people cared about excellent writing still stays in my brain. I admit to misusing "it's" for "its" for many years until one day, the light came on. I was mortified!!

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 9:03:19 PM

GoddessManko

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I always mess words up because of my dyslexia. Sometimes (sometimes) I proof read and I think "my gosh, what on earth?!?!!" However currently I'm inebriated and horny and it's Saturday night. I finished a shallow bottle of Bordeaux from Southern France.
I hope LadyP and MisterP are enjoying the vantages of having an anniversary on a Saturday, just all sorts of mischief to get into, LOL!

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 9:04:38 PM

DaddySatyr

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quote:

ORIGINAL: MistressDarkArt

quote:

ORIGINAL: DaddySatyr

I'm assuming that since the word itself implies ownership, it's been decided that the possessive ('s) isn't needed? That may be more correct than how I learned it but old habits die hard.

Man, don't I know! That is why I cringe left and right while reading online boards these days. S and I make a big joke out of it and send some of the more glaring booboos (booboo's?) to each other every day for a good laugh. Craigslist is notorious for this, btw!

I blame a whole lot of it on text speak/laziness.

I was a 1-A proficiency French speaker. While I've lost some of it due to lack of practice, I play an online game that is very international and people frequently ask: "Does anyone speak French?"

When I answer that I am American but I do okay in French, I get blasted with French text speak, which is VERY difficult to understand. It has made me more aware of avoiding as many contractions (including possessives) as I can.

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 9:07:36 PM

MistressDarkArt

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quote:

ORIGINAL: playfulotter

What about people sending emails to others with no spaces between the end of sentence the period and the next sentence....what is up with that? Usually it is a scammer sending the email but not always.

Re: above: I love DarkSteve's take on the no periods between sentences thing. He responds (paraphrasing here): "Are you sure you're not pregnant, because you sure have missed a few periods!"

Another one that makes my brain hurt is the use of ellipses as sentence separators, often with a mere two (..) dots instead of three.

"She's coming over to my house..then we're going to the park from there..after that, we'll go to dinner..then to the movies."

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 9:09:48 PM

dcnovice

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quote:

ORIGINAL: playfulotter

What bothers me more is that now when you write a sentence like "Mr. Jones's house is the best on the street" is appropriate.....what happened to just using "Jones' '"

Traditionally, I think, the plain apostrophe (which I learned in school) tended to prevail in the States, while apostrophe plus S reigns in the U.K., as one can see on the Underground:

Strunk and White's hugely influential Elements of Style probably played a big role in introducing Americans to adding a post-apostrophe S. The very first rule in the book is "Form the possessive singular of nouns by adding 's."

More than you could ever want to know: http://stylemanual.ngs.org/home/P/possessives | http://www.legalwritingpro.com/articles/C15-feeling-possessive.php

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RE: Apostrophe S: 's for plural? - 3/22/2014 9:11:22 PM

GoddessManko

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quote:

ORIGINAL: playfulotter

What bothers me more is that now when you write a sentence like "Mr. Jones's house is the best on the street" is appropriate.....what happened to just using "Jones' '"

It would work if it was "The Jones' house is the best on the street", meaning it referred to more than a singular subject. :)
So there is hope!

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