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From the lens The Care and Feeding of Apostrophes.

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  • caffimages May 17, 2012 @ 5:57 pm | delete
    Wonderful lens. My partner and I are both writers, and we cringe when we see the poor old apostrophe badly mistreated. Today I found one on a major hair care manufacturer's packaging. Thank you.
  • Susan52 May 1, 2012 @ 1:41 pm | delete
    Still one of my all-time favorite lenses!
  • Karen1960 Apr 27, 2012 @ 11:58 am | delete
    The late, great Keith Waterhouse (author of 'Billy Liar') liked to joke in his newspaper column about founding the AAAA - the Association for the Abolition of the Aberant Apostrophe. He'd have heartily approved of your lens :-)
  • emmakeynes Mar 27, 2012 @ 7:51 pm | delete
    "The Apostrophe Protection Society" is a great organization!
  • emmakeynes Mar 27, 2012 @ 7:44 pm | delete
    I'm so glad you did this! So many people misuse the apostrophe. Have you read "Eats, Shoots, and Leaves"? That book is amazing and funny and all about proper punctuation. Great lens!
  • Caroline Jivane Feb 19, 2012 @ 6:28 pm | delete
    Just want to say thank you, you really make learning the respectable "apostrophe" interesting, enjoyable and fun. Wonderful teaching skills...what a gem you are.
  • vh_creativephoto Feb 14, 2012 @ 12:03 am | delete
    Love this lens...great work! Adding it to my featured lenses section on my lens about adjectives!
  • Alicia Diehl Feb 2, 2012 @ 12:01 pm | delete
    Hi - Can you comment on the use of apostrophes in reference to decades? 1990's? 1990s? 90s? 90's? '90s? or '90's?
  • Greekgeek Mar 29, 2012 @ 2:42 pm | delete
    Plural nouns do not use apostrophes, so you should not use an apostrophe with a date. (I double-checked MLA just now, and it confirms it: don't use apostrophes for decades.)
  • flicker Jan 5, 2012 @ 6:01 pm | delete
    Well done! Helpful lens.
  • Joie Nov 26, 2011 @ 3:36 pm | delete
    Outstanding lens! You have addressed one of my pet peeves!
  • Elhamstero Nov 20, 2011 @ 4:27 pm | delete
    Ah, grocers' apostrophes. There's so many examples on signs around my town that I find myself reaching for a marker pen to correct them. I must resist. Apostrophe abuse really does annoy me though.
  • podolux Oct 5, 2011 @ 10:41 am | delete
    please don't grab my pictures from FLICKR without permission or credit, thanks
  • Greekgeek Oct 5, 2011 @ 8:54 pm | delete
    I'm very, very sorry-- I'm usually very careful to hunt for Creative Commons photos and attribute/backlink properly! But this is a very old article I wrote 5 years ago. Please tell me which photo it is. I thought I had given a photo credit under each image on this page other than the graphics I drew myself.

    Unless you mean the Flickr widget at the bottom? I don't have direct control over which pictures it displays. It's supposed to find only Creative Commons photos that are licensed for reuse, but you're right, all it's doing is linking to the original photo page, which is only half the license. I will delete the widget, since I can't control how it works. If the photo you meant is somewhere else on the page and I forgot to put a caption, please tell me where, since I've just hunted through all the example photos and can't seem to find one that's uncredited.
  • gregoryolney Sep 10, 2011 @ 4:39 am | delete
    This is another of errors which both amuse and annoy me ! Nice len's !
  • DavidDove Sep 5, 2011 @ 3:20 pm | delete
    Excellent work out, thank you.
  • darciefrench Aug 20, 2011 @ 3:31 pm | delete
    Super cute page - I was drawn in by the title. I love words and now I know how to look after apostrophes too :)
  • lizziehumphreys Jun 6, 2011 @ 6:14 pm | delete
    Bad grammar annoys me too! I'm forever correcting people, especially "I could OF" instead of "I could have" - ugh, that's the worst English mistake ever!

    Okay, rant over. Great lens!
  • brandonwithglasses May 3, 2011 @ 8:45 am | delete
    Very good lens. I am on a crusade to teach others to distinguish the apostrophe from the foot mark. The internet is ruining typography! Good graphic designers should know the difference, but I see it typeset wrong everywhere! The clearance of an overpass should use foot marks and inch marks, not apostrophes and quotation marks.
    An apostrophe should have a curl to it just like a comma, but up higher. It should never be straight up and down. That is a foot mark.
    I’m fairly certain that most web pages just default both quotes and apostrophes to inch marks and foot marks. This makes me sad.
  • Greekgeek May 3, 2011 @ 9:16 am | delete
    I’m afraid this problem predates the web, although not the internet: the codes needed to generate curly quotes are high-ascii, not part of the original character set for computers, and they do not display properly on all machines or in all fonts to this day. It’s also more difficult to type them, since there’s not visible keys for them. They can even screw up a lot of online posting boxes, whose programming languages cannot always cope with them. For these reasons, it’s very common to convert them to their straight cousins. Maybe now that algorithms are growing more sophisticated, the correct punctuation will be used.

    I so admire you for fighting the fight to keep street signs grammar and punctuation correct.
  • fantasticallyfictional Apr 14, 2011 @ 4:47 am | delete
    Fabulous interactive lens. Please feel free to have a look at my attempt on apostrophes too.
  • BalanceByDesign Apr 8, 2011 @ 2:40 am | delete
    I loved this lens! Now will you do one on commas please? :-)
  • AbsoluteJeanius Apr 7, 2011 @ 2:47 pm | delete
    LOL Great lens! I used to give bonus points for photographs of signs around town with incorrect spelling or inappropriate punctuation. I feel confident my students are now pointing out to their own children as they drive 'em home from school, "See that sign? It should be 'CongraTulations' not 'CongraDulations.'"
  • Susan52 Apr 7, 2011 @ 2:13 pm | delete
    Just back to comment again that this is one of my very favorite lenses on all of Squidoo. Ah, I wish everyone would study it!
  • BlueStarling Mar 25, 2011 @ 4:16 pm | delete
    Fun and educational lens -- English teachers could definitely use this in their class.
  • Ysis Mar 11, 2011 @ 1:34 am | delete
    Pro apostrophes in the right place, of course. I like the way you refer to them. It's like talking about stray puppies. Nice lesson, professor, it will help me refresh my English grammar.

    One think I hate is to watch people -at least here in Greece - saying metaphorical words which in written speech would be placed between quotation marks and at the same time forming the shape of quotation marks with their fingers.

    Have I thanked you for helping me with my lens on the book "FLOWERS OF GREECE"? I did so in the forum, I hope you have seen my comment.
  • fashionality Mar 5, 2011 @ 10:26 pm | delete
    Splendid lens. It's ironic that there's no easy way to actually use an apostrophe. For example, keyboards only have dedicated keys for primes-- which aren't apostrophes. And primes are what you use here. As a descriptivist, I see nothing particularly wrong with this. People understand what it's supposed to mean anyway. But I think it's interesting nonetheless.
  • SandyPeaks Feb 24, 2011 @ 7:29 pm | delete
    I never let my apostrophes wander - they're too young! Nice lens!
  • WordCustard Feb 9, 2011 @ 9:42 am | delete
    Most informative. We all need to take better care of our apostrophes! I did well on your quiz so much have been paying attention. :)
  • kitty222 Feb 7, 2011 @ 10:55 pm | delete
    Next time I see someone abusing apostrophes, I'm showing them your Lens! You're right. It's terrible!
  • Margo_Arrowsmith Feb 5, 2011 @ 10:13 am | delete
    Good lens. I always thought, though that if you put an apostrophe after a name that ends in an s then its a plural possessive. I am probably wrong, but I protest! ;-D
  • Margo_Arrowsmith Feb 5, 2011 @ 10:13 am | delete
    Good lens. I always thought, though that if you put an apostrophe after a name that ends in an s then its a plural possessive. I am probably wrong, but I protest! ;-D
  • JeremiahStanghini Feb 2, 2011 @ 3:46 pm | delete
    I like it when people put quizzes after they've talked about the knowledge within the quiz. It makes it easier to take the quiz. ;-)

    With Love and Gratitude,

    Jeremiah
  • PaulOnBooks Jan 25, 2011 @ 3:51 pm | delete
    Apostrophe's there grate.
  • Heather_Todd Jan 16, 2011 @ 11:01 am | delete
    great lens
  • jackiebolen Jan 9, 2011 @ 7:41 pm | delete
    An excellent site...thank you!
  • emerald125 Nov 24, 2010 @ 4:56 pm | delete
    Now a shortcut on my desktop! I hate apostrophe's and think they should be outlawed! But I understand not using them correctly makes me look ignorant so this will be regular reading for me :-)
  • magpie (from magpiemusing.com) Nov 8, 2010 @ 12:34 pm | delete
    Thanks for your dispassionate and erudite comment at my blog. I'd have emailed you back, but I couldn't find an email address.
  • Greekgeek Nov 8, 2010 @ 12:46 pm | delete
    Ack! Sorry. Thank you for finding your way here.
    I keep an eye on the Apostrophe Abuse blog, which led me to your post.
  • Oosquid Nov 6, 2010 @ 4:23 am | delete
    nine of the clock --> nine o' clock

    Well I never realized that o' clock is a contraction! I learned something! Actually I learned a lot from this lens, Favorited and Stumbled.
  • Momsbusy247 Oct 27, 2010 @ 7:02 pm | delete
    Dang you had to be very careful in that quiz, I missed two because I didn't take my time (too cockie) that will teach me.

    I will bet our kids these days could not pass this quiz because we no longer teach language in the classroom.
  • kab Sep 24, 2010 @ 10:51 am | delete
    Since today is National Punctuation Day, this lens is being featured today on The Squid Calendar.
  • GonnaFly Sep 13, 2010 @ 2:10 pm | delete
    Whoops. Missed one in the quiz. I wasn't looking properly :(
    Thanks for the great pointers.
  • rms Sep 9, 2010 @ 7:03 am | delete
    Great read and very informative.
  • resabi Aug 22, 2010 @ 4:15 am | delete
    I, too, quibble with the correct answer to the Alice Moss question.
  • Peregrina Aug 8, 2010 @ 7:01 pm | delete
    This is wonderful, thanks! Apostrophe misuse drives me crazy.
  • kab Jul 29, 2010 @ 12:19 pm | delete
    Now I'm super confused. I love the apostrophe, and it kills me when people screw it up. That being said, I got one question wrong.

    I'd like to argue the Alice Moss question. My supporting evidence: Luke 8:40-42. I have always been taught that the Bible is correct. Unless Jesus is some divine exception to the rule....?
  • spirituality Dec 15, 2009 @ 3:37 am | delete
    :) great lens. I did decently (90%). That last one had me stumped though.
  • Kate-Phizackerley Nov 16, 2009 @ 11:22 pm | delete
    Wonderful lens. Blessed.
  • Ramkitten Nov 7, 2009 @ 11:10 pm | delete
    Yay, a lens right up my alley! A breath of fresh air, actually. I'm so nitpicky when it comes to proper punctuation (and spelling and grammar); although, I make plenty of goofs myself, especially when I'm rushing. I'm lensrolling this to my proofreading lens. Well done!
  • cosmicjellybaby Sep 4, 2009 @ 6:24 am | delete
    Isn't the possessive 's after a name that ends in s supposed to be used except when referring to either Jesus or a name of a Roman Emperor? Don't know why this should be, I just seem to remember it from some grammar book I read once upon a time. I mean Yates's Wine Lodge uses it, so are they right or re they wrong. Great lens by the way.
  • RobertoLebron Jul 21, 2009 @ 8:02 am | delete
    I think I love you.

    Thank you. I laughed, I cried, and I laughed again. Great job. Your students are lucky indeed. Keep fighting the good fight. The English language needs more champions like you.
  • kathypi Feb 25, 2009 @ 3:34 pm | delete
    Thank you for joining my group, "Need an answer to a question" lots of useful info here, glad to have your lens, great topic and lens, Kathy
  • oma33 Feb 25, 2009 @ 11:04 am | delete
    Great lens. Although English is my second language I've always been bothered when I see signs like "Room's for Rent" "Lot's for Sale"
    You didn't touch on the "their-they're and there syndrome."
    I'm a retired Spec.Ed. Teacher but worked more with emotionally challenged students then students with learning disabilities.
    I won't try to remember how many cl;asses I spent on apostrophes etc.
    5 starts for your lens, although I feel they should supply more of them in special
    cases.
  • Greekgeek Feb 16, 2009 @ 3:29 pm | in reply to Anna | delete
    Your comment: I'm pretty sure "taste's great" is right. It's a contraction of "taste is great."

    You might be right, although I'm not the person who first registered that photo as apostrophe abuse, so I'm not the only person who saw it as awkward. I think most people say, "It tastes great," as opposed to, "The taste is great." However, now that you ask, I realize there is no way to know for certain which is meant! I guess I'd better find a less ambiguous example, eh?
  • BlackroseBugg Feb 1, 2009 @ 9:28 am | delete
    Odd I should stumble over this a couple of days after I read that the Town Council in Birmingham has decided to eliminate all apostrophes from street signs and official maps. King's Court will now be Kings Court, etc. I think it is nothing more than a sneaky way to imply more royalty than they are entitled to, but that's just my two silver pennie's. OOPS pennies. :) Great Lens, oh creator of the Nipocar.
  • RolandTumble Nov 7, 2008 @ 5:58 pm | delete
    Hooray! This is one of my pet peeves--great to see it addressed so well.
  • Gail47 Oct 30, 2008 @ 5:50 pm | delete
    Fantastic lens! I started a lens re punctuation and then found this one - ouch. Guess I'll rethink my lens. Great job. 5* and lensroll.
  • CCGAL Oct 25, 2008 @ 12:23 pm | delete
    I think every teacher in America could use this lens as a homework assignment for their students. You did an exceptional job of teaching the correct use of the apostrophe - the lens is interesting, amusing, and accurate. I will be sharing it often.
  • bekat Jul 8, 2008 @ 5:19 pm | delete
    Finally I understand nested quotes - thank you thank you thank you!!!
  • cherangelry Jun 16, 2008 @ 12:26 am | delete
    Oh! Another grammar girl! Yay! 5* and a new fan!
  • Anna Jun 3, 2008 @ 8:43 pm | delete
    I'm pretty sure "taste's great" is right. It's a contraction of "taste is great".
  • EditorDave May 10, 2008 @ 12:21 am | delete
    Wow! I couldn't have said it better! So, instead of repeating what you've said, I hope you don't mind me lensrolling to your great site in addition to linking to it! Drop by my Grammar and Parts of Speech site and say "Hi"!
  • Greekgeek May 9, 2008 @ 1:36 pm | delete
    ukexpat: I made exactly that point at the end of my short "Nested Quotes" section. But you're the second person to repeat what I said there, so I'm obviously not being clear enough! I'll have to think about how to rephrase it.
  • ukexpat May 8, 2008 @ 2:27 pm | delete
    In your "Nested Quotes" example, they are technically not apostrophes, they are "single inverted commas".
  • KimGiancaterino Apr 30, 2008 @ 11:56 am | delete
    I admired this lens long ago, but am back to bestow a Squid Angel Blessing (also to lensroll to my grammar lens). Thanks for supporting the oft-abused apostrophe!
  • beeobrien Apr 12, 2008 @ 2:48 pm | delete
    I was just getting ready to make this very lens, but you beat me to it. Very nice job. 5 star's (ha ha)
  • squidinkley Mar 13, 2008 @ 8:58 pm | delete
    Happy to join the small minority of people who actually know or care about apostrophe misuse. I gave this lens 5 stars--it amazes me how even major corporations like Procter & Gamble don't know that their "Kid's Crest" has a glaring error in its labeling. From what I see, misuse of "it's" is the single biggest problem in this category: no one--especially on the web--seems to recognize that it can work ONLY as a contraction. My advice to those unsure about where to place an apostrophe is: dont. Youll just end up looking ignorant.
  • cherangelry Mar 12, 2008 @ 10:11 pm | delete
    Thank you so much for this informative lens! I am often saddened when I see the poor apostrophe tortured so brutally. It deserves to be used appropriately but sadly the poor little guy is often overlooked or overused by ignorant or lazy language marauders.
  • Evelyn_Saenz Feb 15, 2008 @ 12:04 pm | delete
    The Adjectives just came over to visit your Apostrophes. Congratualtions on a great lens.
  • thomasz Feb 13, 2008 @ 2:53 am | delete
    Nice lens. Great info.
  • BigJim Jan 31, 2008 @ 1:22 pm | delete
    FABULOUS lens! 5* and I've submitted it for Lens Of The Day. Great job.
  • ce2consulting Jan 28, 2008 @ 10:58 pm | delete
    Terrific lens! I love the "What's Wrong With This Picture" modules. I've been a professional editor/proofreader, and I hate explaining apostrophes. Well done and funny, too.
  • Greekgeek Jan 27, 2008 @ 5:40 pm | delete
    BNickel: I suspect the (')til mistake derives from people thinking that it's a contraction of until, but yes, it's frustrating when major networks or magazines like Time don't check their grammar!
  • lisadh Jan 25, 2008 @ 6:51 pm | delete
    AMEN!! My personal pet peeve - people who put apostrophes in their family name, creating such painful expressions as "Merry Christmas from the Smith's." Argh!
  • BNickel Dec 29, 2007 @ 12:28 am | delete
    Great lens! I'm a copy editor, and my pet peeve is the single open quote used as an apostrophe to begin words like 'til as in 'Til Death (see new photo #11 I submitted). Can't believe a big TV network doesn't bother to use a proofreader before plastering their logo on billboards all over the USA!
  • Andrew_Braithwaite Aug 10, 2007 @ 11:41 am | delete
    Hey great lens very interesting!
    Rate Your Mum
  • sonia_simone Aug 6, 2007 @ 2:58 pm | delete
    Bless you for this important lens, you magnificent creature.
  • Graceonline Aug 3, 2007 @ 3:47 pm | delete
    Oh fun. Thank you Greek! Who can live without Strunk and White at their fingertips? Best desktop investment ever. (Yes, I know. That's an incomplete sentence.)
  • KimGiancaterino Jul 30, 2007 @ 1:23 am | delete
    Wonderful lens. This is such a pet peeve of mine! I love your pics with all the gaffes (or is it gaffe's?)
  • Susan52 Jul 27, 2007 @ 10:49 am | delete
    Can I show this to the produce lady at the grocery store, the one who sells banana's? Or the editor of our local weekly newspaper (a per-fessional, for pete's sake!)? This is my all-time pettest pet peeve! Love the lens! Can I rate it twice? You deserve 10 stars!
    Susan
  • Jul 27, 2007 @ 8:17 am | delete
    My wife is always nagging me about apostrophes. I've added this lens to my favorites as a reference! :)
  • Mac33 Jul 27, 2007 @ 8:02 am | delete
    Awesome lens! We should all do our part to end apostrophe abuse.
  • Freaknoodles Jul 26, 2007 @ 10:05 pm | delete
    Great lens! I think it should be required reading for anyone writing ads or printing signs. It amazes me that people pay for advertising and don't bother to use correct punctuation and spelling.
  • GypsyPirate Jul 9, 2007 @ 10:09 pm | delete
    LOL - love this lens!!
  • JohannTheDog Jun 26, 2007 @ 5:35 am | delete
    Awesome lens!!!! 5,5,5!
  • gpower2llc Jun 23, 2007 @ 9:53 pm | delete
    This is great! Thank you.
  • Janusz Jun 19, 2007 @ 9:58 am | delete
    Wow! I´ll have to concentrate a little more in future, although English is not my mother tongue either :).
    Great Lens.
  • surfsusan Jun 12, 2007 @ 1:06 pm | delete
    Help! my brain is boiling. It could be that English is not my mother tounge.
  • MrLewisSmile Jun 12, 2007 @ 12:41 pm | delete
    Eats, Shoots
  • The_Bard Jun 7, 2007 @ 7:41 pm | delete
    "Yes..I want to preserve the apostrophe!"
    You've made another great lens. Well done!

by

Greekgeek

Storyteller, former Latin teacher, student of mythology and the ancient world: I've worn many hats, but always I've dabbled in computers and the web.

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