Apostrophe Rules For Possessives

1. Use ’s to show that one person/thing owns or is a member of something.
For example: Amy’s ballet class 

Lisa’s car
*If the name ends in -s, it's correct to add another 's or it's also acceptable to add only '.
For example: Ross' room or Ross's sports team
Singular nouns: add -’s The boy’s bicycle is

blue.
Example: boy - boy’s

Ross - Ross’ room
Ross’s room
2. Use an apostrophe after the -s (s') at the end of a plural noun to show
possession.  
For example: The parents' bedroom 
The Smiths' lives
It is not necessary to add another "s" to the end of a possessive plural noun.
Regular plural nouns:  

add -’ The parents’
bicycles are blue.
Example: parents - parents’
3. If a plural noun doesn't end in -s, add ’s to create the possessive form.  
For example: The children's rooms
The tuna's beds.
Some irregular plural The children’s

nouns: add -’s bicycles are blue.
Example: children - children’s

Exercise 1
1. David and Sue are husband and wife. David is ____________ husband.
2. This car belongs to Ann. It's ____________ car.
3. The king lives in a very beautiful palace. The ____________ palace is very
beautiful.
4. I was at Elena at her house last night. I was at ____________ house last night.
5. All the students have put their books on the table. All ____________ books are
on the table.
6. My sister was born on 28th June. The 28th June is my ____________ birthday.
7. Mrs Penn makes delicious cakes. Mrs ____________ cakes are delicious.
8. My grandparents have a house next door to us. My ____________ house is next
door to ours.
9. Mr and Mrs Smith have a daughter, Mary. Mr and Mrs Smith are ____________
parents.
Exercise 2
1. The student has a pen. The pen is on the table.
____________________________________________________________________
2. The man has a car. The car is in the garage.
____________________________________________________________________
3. My friends had a party. The party was fun.
____________________________________________________________________
4. The women have kids. The kids are playing.
____________________________________________________________________
5. India has a population. The population is very large.
____________________________________________________________________
6. The children have a mother. The mother is over there.
____________________________________________________________________
7. My sisters have friends. The friends are interesting.
____________________________________________________________________
8. The teachers had a meeting. The meeting was last week.
____________________________________________________________________
Joint Ownership
If both people own the same item together, you can add the possessive to the final
one.
For example:
• Tim and Jane's trip (Tim and Jane are going together on the trip.)
• Darnell and Dylan's open house (Darnell and Dylan are having one open
house.)
Both people own the This is Dave and Alice's car. 

same thing: add ’s to
the final component  
*both Dave and Alice own the car
Example: Dave and Alice -

Dave and Alice's
Separate Ownership
However, if each individual owns separate versions of the same type of item, then
you would make both owners possessive. For example, if Dave and Alice both own
a separate car, it would be "Alice's and Dave's cars. "
• Darnell's and Dylan's open houses (two diﬀerent open houses)
• Tim's and Jane's trips (two separate trips)
• Sally's and Steve's cottages (two diﬀerent cottages)
*Notice that when there are separate owners of the items, the items are plural.
Each individual owns separate versions of the These are Alice's and Dave's cars.
same type of item: add ’s after each  

component
*Dave and Alice both own a separate car
Example:  
Dave and Alice -  
Dave’s and Alice's
Exercise 3
1. __________________________________ watches are very different. (Lou and
Jeff)
2. __________________________________ mom has long dark hair. (Sally and Joe)
3. __________________________________ math teacher is very good at explaining
how to work the problems. (Heather and Marie)
4. Do you think __________________________________ dog is very friendly?
(Summer and Heath)
5. __________________________________ father must have been upset when he
heard what
happened to them at the well. (Jack and Jill)
6. __________________________________ homework papers were lost on the bus.
(Gwen and Will)
7. My __________________________________ teams are playing each other
tonight. (cousin and brother)
8. __________________________________ routines for the gymnastics meet are
both very difficult.
9. __________________________________ wedding lasted all day. (Maria and
John)
10. __________________________________ expectations of marriage were very
different. (Kate and Robert)

Apostrophe Rules For Possessives

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1. Use ’s to show that one person/thing owns or is a member of something.

For example: Amy’s ballet class

For example: Ross' room or Ross's sports team

Singular nouns: add -’s The boy’s bicycle is

Example: boy - boy’s

Regular plural nouns:

Example: parents - parents’

Some irregular plural The children’s

Example: children - children’s

Both people own the This is Dave and Alice's car.

Example: Dave and Alice -

• Darnell's and Dylan's open houses (two diﬀerent open houses)

• Tim's and Jane's trips (two separate trips)

• Sally's and Steve's cottages (two diﬀerent cottages)

same type of item: add ’s after each

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