Weekly Grammar: Plurals and Possessives

Possessives can be tricky, especially when a word ends with an s. There are two ways that are both equally acceptable for singular words - by adding an apostrophe or by adding an apostrophe s. We'll use my home state of Kansas as an example: Either Kansas' state flower is the sunflower, or Kansas's state flower is the sunflower would be correct. I personally like the first option, and so does my spell checker. There are a few exceptions to this rule though: classical names such as Zeus, Venus, Moses, and Jesus are made possessive by adding the apostrophe - no s.

The rule for plural words ending with s is to simply add the apostrophe to the end of the word, as in the boxes' destination. Plural words that don't end with an s, such as oxen, are made possessive by adding the apostrophe s - the oxen's yokes. I'm with Brian Regan...I think the plural of box should be boxen. ; )

Important Greeting Card Grammar from Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips:

"As you learned in the section 'Words That End with S,' you could go to Bob Jones' house or Bob Jones's house - both are correct. But what if you have a family? Bob, Amy, and their children are the Joneses. The possessive form of Joneses is Joneses'. If the Joneses invite people over for dinner, their invitation could read two different ways:

• Please come to the Joneses' house for dinner. (possessive)
• The Joneses invite you to dinner. (plural)"

Learn it...love it...live it. ; )