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What are possessive apostrophes?

 Bird sitting on the head of a cat

How to use a possessive apostrophe

An apostrophe can be used to show that one thing belongs to or is connected to something. This is called a possessive apostrophe.

Let's take a look at some examples.

The cat's tail was fluffy.

Cat is a singular noun so you need to add an apostrophe and "s" to show that the tail belongs to the cat.

Charles' cat was naughty.

Charles is a singular noun that ends in an "s", so you need to add an apostrophe to show that the cat belongs to Charles.

The brothers' feet were muddy.

Brothers is a plural noun that ends in an "s" so you don't add another "s" after your apostrophe. You can just add an apostrophe to show the feet belong to the brothers.

The children's toys were broken

Children is a plural noun but it doesn't end with an "s" so you need to add an apostrophe and "s" to show that the toys belong to the children.

 Bird sitting on the head of a cat

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