The apostrophe (2)
By Joanne O'Donnell
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We saw in the last article that one of the
apostrophe's main functions is to denote possession.
Today we are going to look at its other uses.
Contractions
The apostrophe's other main use is to replace
letters omitted from a word that has been shortened
or contracted. An example is my own surname,
O'Donnell, which originally meant son
of Donnell, but an apostrophe now replaces
the letter f. Similarly, as we know from
our last article, it's is not a possessive
form, rather the apostrophe replaces the letter
i to form the contracted form of it is.
The apostrophe's use in contractions falls
into one of several categories:
- Replacing one or more letters in informal
or spoken English. Some common examples are:
am - 'm as in "I'm just coming!"
are - 're as in "They're late
again."
has, is - 's as in "who's going
to help me with the dishes?"
have 've and so on...
had, would - 'd
shall, will - 'll
not - n't
A few contractions formed using n't
are irregular. These are can't (can
not), won't (will not) and shan't
(shall not).
The apostrophe can also be used to replace
letters on both sides of a word, as in salt
'n' pepper (i.e. and).
- In rare examples, the apostrophe shows that
the original whole word or phrase is not being
used.
| Examples: |
'cello
- violoncello |
o'clock
- a contraction formed in the 18th century
of the whole phrase of the clock
|
- In literature, the apostrophe can be used
to indicate that a local dialect is being
spoken, such as that typical of London, where
it wouldn't be uncommon to be asked,
"'ave you seen 'em 'angin' around 'ere lately?"
[have you seen them hanging around here
lately?].
This is only really needed for recognition
purposes.
Never forget that although contractions are
widespread in spoken English and even make the
speaker sound much more natural, they should
always be avoided in formal writing - only in
informal correspondence are they really acceptable.
Plurals
The apostrophe can also be used to denote
plurals where the written form could prove
confusing otherwise, in particular for numbers
and very short abbreviations. |
| Examples: |
Our sales prices in the 1980's
were higher than they are now. |
| My name is spelt with two i's. |
| He regaled me with if's and but's. |
| The apostrophe
must not be used to form plurals in any
other circumstances. |
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