Plural vs Possessive in Nouns
Distinguish between the plural -s suffix and the possessive -'s suffix in nouns
What a learner can do afterwards
- Sort words like 'dogs', 'dog's', and 'dogs'' into plural, singular possessive, and plural possessive categories
- Explain why 'the cats bowl' is incorrect and supply the correct form ('the cat's bowl' or 'the cats' bowl') for a given meaning
- Write two sentences using the same noun — one as a plural and one as a possessive
1 · Read
You already know that adding -s can make a noun plural, and that an apostrophe plus s can show a noun owns something. Now look closely: dogs, dog's, and dogs' look almost the same, but they mean different things. Today you'll learn to read the apostrophe and tell them apart so you know who owns what.
Ben has one cat. The cat's water bowl is empty because he forgot to fill it. Nora has three cats. The cats' water bowls are all full. Notice that cats by itself, with no apostrophe, would only mean more than one cat, nothing about bowls at all.
Some plurals do not end in s at all, like children, men, women, mice, and feet. For these, the apostrophe works like it does for one owner: add apostrophe plus s. The drawings of the children become the children's drawings, and the boots of the men become the men's boots.
Ask yourself one question: does this word own something, or is it just naming more than one? If nothing is owned, leave off the apostrophe. If one owner has it, put the apostrophe before the s. If many owners have it, put the apostrophe after the s.
dogs is just plural, dog's belongs to one owner, and dogs' belongs to many owners, so the apostrophe's position tells you who owns what.
2 · Watch
Take it off screen
Where it sits
This opens up
Nothing builds on it yet.
Where this leads
Jobs that lean on this skill. Follow one to see everything it is built on.
24 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.