The apostrophe is a raised comma. It is a punctuation mark used in English language. It was introduced in English in the sixteenth century. It looks similar to the single quotation mark but it serves a different purpose altogether. In most of the cases apostrophes are used to mark contractions. There are used in various ways and the correct use of apostrophe is discussed below:-

1- Use with contractions

Apostrophe is used in place of missing letter(s). A contraction is a word (or set of numbers) in which one or more letters (or numbers) have been omitted. The use of contractions is common in speaking or in formal writing. It is used to denote missing letters in words.

Examples: - She's going for a walk.
Don't touch a bare wire.
Who's there in the room?
It's the first day of the month.

2- Use to show possession

Possession is when something belongs to someone or something. Apostrophe is used to indicate singular possession and is used before the s.

Examples: - Mr. Rachel's bat
This is Jessica's book.
The Dog's biscuits are in the kitchen.
Pamela's dressing sense is really nice.

Rules to follow:-
There are certain rules which you should follow while using apostrophe to show possession. These rules are given below:-

a- Apostrophes should not be used with possessive pronouns. The reason being, possessive pronouns already shows possession. Possessive personal pronouns do not use an apostrophe. Examples include- ours, his, hers, its, theirs etc.

b- In case of a plural possession, use the apostrophe immediately after the plural noun. Examples include - two boys' socks, two girls' hankies, the Williamsons' house etc.

3- Do not use them to indicate plural

Apostrophes should not be used to indicate plural. Often people get confused and use apostrophe when using plural. The apostrophe should not be used when you are just talking about something that is plural, with no possession.

Examples: - Mango's (incorrect) Mangoes (correct)
Apple's (incorrect) Apples (correct)

4- Use in foreign words

Apostrophes are also used in foreign words like Qur'an, Hawai'i. The use of an apostrophe in this case is purely decorative.

These were the general rules which you should follow when you are using apostrophe. One personal suggestion is to proofread your content when you have finished writing. Check all the use of s in the document as these would indicate the presence of an apostrophe. Nowadays online punctuation checkers are available and if you are short of time then you can check your document online for any punctuation errors.

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