The correct use of apostrophes in English. Apostrophes in English are used for possession and contraction. They are not used to form plurals. Apostrophes are used to indicate possession in nouns (but not in pronouns: hers, ours, theirs....). The girl 's bicycle. The bicycle is hers (not her's).

Apostrophes have two main uses: indicating possession and indicating a contraction. Here are some common apostrophe rules that you should keep in mind. To show possession with a singular noun, add an apostrophe plus the letter “s.” For example: For most plural nouns, add only an apostrophe.

Although there will always be minor disagreements about usage, these six guidelines should help you decide when to use apostrophes, where to put them, and when to leave them out altogether. Use apostrophes to form contractions, where two or more words are combined to form one, with letters omitted.

We sometimes connect two words to make one shorter word. We use an apostrophe to show that we have left out one or more letters: They don’t like salt in their food. It’s a long way to walk. Isn’t that such a pretty dress? You’ve broken my watch! We can’t tell your father.