Is it parent's or parents? Or is it parents'? How do you spell it? This apostrophe and 's' combination trips up a lot of people. But don't worry, by the end of this article, you will be completely clear on which one to use - not only in the case of the word 'parent' but in all possessive situations.
The short answer is this:
Let's talk about the word 'parent' specifically. When should you use -'s and when should you use -s'? We will also cover some examples.
First, a word on possessives. It is a grammatical concept that enables you to talk about ownership. Using -'s and -s' allows you to show that something belongs to a thing, person, or place. For example:
A parent, as you know, is a child's guardian - the person who brings up and cares for them. The word 'parent' is singular - meaning it is just one person - and there is no apostrophe, so it is non-possessive.
If you want to use the possessive form to talk about one single parent, then you would use -'s. For example:
'Parents' is the plural of the noun' parent.' There is no apostrophe; therefore, it is non-possessive in this context. Here are a couple of examples of the word used in a sentence:
When you want to use the possessive form to talk about more than one parent, i.e., both parents or many parents, then you would use -s'. For example:
The rules outlined above apply to all nouns. So if a noun is singular, you use -'s to make it possessive, and if it is plural, you use s'. Here are some more examples:
You might also find it helpful to know that you can use possessive adjectives and pronouns. Here is a list of possessive adjectives:
As you can see, these possessive adjectives all show ownership between a person or thing and the noun.
And here is a list of possessive pronouns:
You should know one more thing about using the possessive form -'s, which applies when a word or name ends with the letter 's.'
There is some debate around this topic, which is why you should know about it. You might sometimes see -s' being used with a singular noun or person. For example:
That is because some style books and other authorities have determined this should be how we form a possessive from a noun that ends with an 's.' Many, however, still agree that we should use the usual conventions, and therefore, you should still use -'s. As such:
Suffice it to say no one will hold it against you if you use either of these forms. Pick the one that feels most logical to you.
I hope the issue of forming the possessive out of nouns feels more evident to you now and that you know when to use 'parent's' or 'parents'. Make sure to also check out our other articles on confusing words.
Let's summarize how to spell parents:
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