On apostrophes
"John Smith" insists that his version of using the apostrophe is
correct. Those pointing out his mistaken ideas are called morons and imbeciles. Three seconds of Google search brings enlightenment. For the apostrophe-challenged from: http://www.write101.com/sample.htm --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. To show OMISSION What's a nice kid like me doing in a place like this? We started with two words, what and is, but because this is informal writing, we want to express it informally, so we omit a letter from the word is. Because we're well brought up little Vegemites (remember?), we let people know what we've done. I could've danced all night ... (could have, not could 'of') It's time for breakfast (It is time ...) It's been raining all day. (It has been raining ...) So, in future whenever you see an apostrophe, make a conscious effort to work out what the original word was before the letter was omitted. Sometimes, as in the case of could've and would've, more than one letter has been omitted. This will establish good habits and alert you to the role of the apostrophe. 2. To show POSSESSION We went to Marmaduke's restaurant for dinner. (Marmaduke owns the restaurant; it is the restaurant of Marmaduke.) Notice how the apostrophe comes at the end of the noun (Marmaduke) and is accompanied by the letter 's' - a bit like a chaperone. We knew whom to blame for the missing pie; there was cream all over the dog's whiskers! We're only referring to one dog and it owns the whiskers (and the pie and a very satisfied smile, no doubt). Some words sound awkward when an apostrophe 's' is added: Jesus's disciples. The accepted form here is to just use the 's' apostrophe: Jesus' disciples. N.B. This only applies to names of Biblical or historical significance e.g. Jesus, Moses, Zeus, Demosthenes, Ramses ... the rest of us whack in the apostrophe and add an 's.' Moses' followers, Zeus' priests, Demosthenes' teachings, Ramses' pyramid Others don't have the same clumsy sound: The princess's chair. The important thing is to be consistent in your use of the form - nothing is writ in stone! Confusion arises when the apostrophe is used with a plural noun. At the zoo, the children were most interested in seeing the lions' den. More than one lion owns the den, so we add the apostrophe after the 's' (this is the den of the lions). So, the general rule is: * if there's one owner - add an apostrophe and then 's' * if there are two or more owners - add 's' then an apostrophe. However, (and of course you're not surprised to hear this, are you?), there are exceptions to this rule. For words which form their plural by changing internal letters (instead of adding 's'), the apostrophe comes before the 's'. It was the children's turn to wash up. Children is already a plural word, so we don't need to make it doubly plural by adding 's' apostrophe; however, we do need to indicate the idea of ownership, so we use apostrophe 's'. Some other words which follow this rule a men, women, people. When you have 'double possession' - when two or more people (or subjects) own one item and both (or all) of their names are mentioned, the apostrophe is applied only to the second (or last) name. We had coffee at Ermintrude and Marmaduke's mansion. When you're using names that end in -S, you follow the same rules as with any other name and add apostrophe S: Chris's car, Bridget Jones's Diary. Plural names also follow the same rules: Bill Thomas's car; the Thomases' new house (add -es to names that end in S to indicate plural form). The apostrophe is also used with many expressions of time (to show that the time period owns the other noun): an hour's time; a year's holiday BUT notice that we do not use the apostrophe with possessive pronouns (remember, these are the little guys who step in and lend a paw to nouns). After dinner at Marmaduke's restaurant, we went back to his place for coffee. The bird's feathers were ruffled. (The bird owns the feathers.) The bird ruffled its feathers. (The bird owns the feathers, but the pronoun its is being used instead of the noun, so there is NO apostrophe. You'll see it's and its used incorrectly nearly every single day and in places where it should never happen. An easy way to make sure you never confuse the two is to ask yourself (do this quietly, you don't want to alarm those around you), if the words it is can be substituted in the sentence- if the answer is yes, then whack in the old apostrophe. If the answer is no, then sit on your hands so you won't be tempted. The bird ruffled its (it is?) feathers. (NO) It's (it is?) a lovely day. (YES) To summarise, here is a good way to check if you need an apostrophe - for future reference: If you can substitute the use of "of" then you use the apostrophe. e.g. This is Marmaduke's house ... it is the house of Marmaduke. The children's mother phoned ... the mother of the children phoned. Three months' work ... the work of three months. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- If "John" likes, he can print this and keep it near his computer. Dave K8MN |
dave contiue s his OT hijacking of the NG
wrote:
Dave this is not an english class Lord knows you could use a few... |
On apostrophes
Dave Heil wrote:
John Jones is the man. John Jones' car is in the shop. The Jones's car is in the shop. Bill Smith is another man. Bill Smiths' car is in the shop too. The Smiths' family car is in the shop also. Bill Smith's an avg. joe. JS |
On apostrophes
John Smith I wrote:
... JS However, both jesse jackson and al-not-too-sharp-sharpton tend to speak in such a manner as to mimic heils' use of apostrophes. JS |
dave contiue s his OT hijacking of the NG
|
dave contiue s his OT hijacking of the NG
|
dave contiue s his OT hijacking of the NG
"KH6HZ" wrote in message ... wrote: Dave this is not an english class Lord knows you could use a few... Mark Morgan said of his writing: "I realy don't write that badly I do write in ore european mode [sic]" |
On apostrophes
"John Smith I" wrote in message ... John Smith I wrote: ... JS However, both jesse jackson and al-not-too-sharp-sharpton tend to speak in such a manner as to mimic heils' use of apostrophes. JS Of course that is just one bunghole's opinion. Those of other bungholes may vary. |
I Jack Threads
wrote in message ... On Sun, 15 Apr 2007 12:39:18 -0400, "KH6HZ" wrote: wrote: Dave this is not an english class Lord knows you could use a few... be that as it may or not it is still OFF topic **** from you both And you aren't the moderator, Mork. |
dave contiue s his OT hijacking of the NG
KH6HZ wrote:
wrote: Dave this is not an english class Lord knows you could use a few... Mark Morgan is writing about something being off topic? You're kidding. Dave K8MN |
On apostrophes
John Smith I wrote:
John Smith I wrote: ... JS However, both jesse jackson and al-not-too-sharp-sharpton tend to speak in such a manner as to mimic heils' use of apostrophes. Then they have it right. March to your own drummer, "John", but don't be surprised if someone laughs at you or points out your mistakes. Dave K8MN |
dave contiue s his OT hijacking of the NG
John Smith I wrote:
wrote: ... never said that merely that that is not an english class and such discssions were merely part of Daves and mds plan to hijack the NG ... Ahhh. The use of logic was discontinued decades ago, replaced by "standardized testing." Bush continues this tradition with "no child left behind." It looks like you were left behind, "John." You don't expect anyone to really notice, do you? I noticed. Or, even to notice that heil is a petty moron? Well, "John", it is an upside-down world you inhabit, where incorrect becomes correct, where those who know and understand something become morons and where a phrase such as the one you wrote (above), becomes a sentence. You're welcome for the lesson in how to use an apostrophe. Dave K8MN |
On apostrophes
Dave Heil wrote:
[more of the same old chit Len tires of ...] Dave: Yer' a moron ... end of story. You've worked hard for that title, you deserve it; wear it with pride! JS |
On apostrophes
John Smith I wrote:
Dave Heil wrote: [more of the same old chit Len tires of ...] Len tires of being wrong and of receiving what he dishes out. Dave: Yer' a moron ... end of story. Except that your statement isn't the end of the story. The moron would be the guy who made the statements on punctuation which you made and, in the face of facts to the contrary, continued to bray that he's right. You've worked hard for that title, you deserve it; wear it with pride! Your actions and reactions of today ensure that the title is yours. There's no shame in it, "John." After all, you're anonymous. You can simply choose another pseudonym if you're embarrassed. Dave K8MN |
On apostrophes
On Apr 15, 12:59 pm, Dave Heil wrote:
"John Smith" insists that his version of using the apostrophe is correct. Those pointing out his mistaken ideas are called morons and imbeciles. Three seconds of Google search brings enlightenment. For the apostrophe-challenged from: I'm reminded of Hans' story of the new ham being corrected by someone who supposedly knows better, wearing the artificial cloak of well- meaningness. You remain the smuggest of hams. |
dave contiue s his OT hijacking of the NG
On Apr 15, 1:39 pm, "KH6HZ" wrote:
wrote: Dave this is not an english class Lord knows you could use a few... The Lord knows that you grabbed you grabbed up a bunch of Hawaiin calls. |
dave contiue s his OT hijacking of the NG
|
On apostrophes
|
On apostrophes
On Apr 16, 8:39 am, Dave Heil wrote:
wrote: On Apr 15, 12:59 pm, Dave Heil wrote: "John Smith" insists that his version of using the apostrophe is correct. Those pointing out his mistaken ideas are called morons and imbeciles. Three seconds of Google search brings enlightenment. For the apostrophe-challenged from: I'm reminded of Hans' story of the new ham being corrected by someone who supposedly knows better, wearing the artificial cloak of well- meaningness. That's fine, hot-ham-and-cheese. Was it the numerous examples of the proper use of apostrophes--almost all wrong--provided by "John", which reminded you? Come to think of it, it was your thread hi-jacking which drew my attention. I probably wouldn't have noticed it otherwise. There's only so much of your nonsense that I'm going to read, so this one squabble of the many squabbles that you've gotten yourself into would likely have been missed. You remain the smuggest of hams. You might have forgotten the fellow who suggests that someone who uses an apostrophe correctly is an imbecile or moron. Now *that's* smug. Dave K8MN Or I might have forgotten the fellow who says that people who misspell words are incapable of leadership. Smug? Youbetcha. |
On apostrophes
|
On apostrophes
|
On apostrophes
John Smith I wrote:
wrote: [...] heil's an idiot, fun to yank his chain now and then just to let any newbies see for themselves. No, anonymous "John", I'm not an idiot. I know how to use an apostrophe. He reminds me of "Mels' Hole" up in oregon, toss a rock in and you never hear it hit bottom, same with the hole in heils' head ... Don't be embarrassed over your errant rant. You can always choose another pseudonym. Dave K8MN |
Dave Hiel thread jacker
On Apr 15, 5:59 pm, wrote:
On Sun, 15 Apr 2007 20:53:37 GMT, Dave Heil wrote: John Smith I wrote: Dave Heil wrote: [more of the same old chit Len tires of ...] Len tires of being wrong and of receiving what he dishes out. I am sure that isn't it Dave: Yer' a moron ... end of story. Except that your statement isn't the end of the story. the moron is the guy that thinks he is apointed to reveiw and check everyone writing In the guise of well-meaningness... recall Hans' story. you forget that the flame war on my part hit high gear over Robesons refuasal and yours for that matter to answer the question "how is anybodies sexauly on topic for RRAP" I'm sure they meant well... |
Dave Hiel thread jacker
|
Dave Hiel thread jacker
|
Dave Hiel thread jacker
On Apr 18, 1:21 am, Dave Heil wrote:
wrote: On Apr 15, 5:59 pm, wrote: On Sun, 15 Apr 2007 20:53:37 GMT, Dave Heil wrote: John Smith I wrote: Dave Heil wrote: [more of the same old chit Len tires of ...] Len tires of being wrong and of receiving what he dishes out. I am sure that isn't it Dave: Yer' a moron ... end of story. Except that your statement isn't the end of the story. the moron is the guy that thinks he is apointed to reveiw and check everyone writing In the guise of well-meaningness... recall Hans' story. Is that the one where the new user of apostrophes forever gives up the use of punctuation? You're the one who made the rule that a person who misspells a word is incapable of leadership... So you tell me. you forget that the flame war on my part hit high gear over Robesons refuasal and yours for that matter to answer the question "how is anybodies sexauly on topic for RRAP" I'm sure they meant well... I know you must have a warm spot for the guy who advertised for a beat me-hurt-me, pee-on-me encounter as a bi-sexual pagan s/m freak in another newsgroup. In another newsgroup? The way you guys carry on, you'd have thunk he posted it here. That's nice, hot-ham-and-cheese. Comfort Mark and don't hurt his self-esteem. Dave K8MN That's a fine thing for an ARRL Director Wannabe to say about a fellow amateur. |
Dave Hiel thread jacker
|
Dave Hiel thread jacker
Semolina P Smith wrote:
[chit] PLONKERS! JS |
dave contiue s his OT hijacking of the NG
On Apr 15, 10:54 pm, John Smith I wrote:
wrote: Mark: Why forte free agent? I thought you were the xnews guy? JS FRE is thew word and I hased it off and on for years Xnews is favorued by my impersaonators |
Dave Hiel thread jacker
On Apr 18, 11:13 am, John Smith I wrote:
wrote: ... That's a fine thing for an ARRL Director Wannabe to say about a fellow amateur. arrl director? ROFLOL ;-P I know, I know! The dumbing down of arrl is an interesting concept (if that is possible.) In his favor, he wants the Section Reports back in the publication, QST. A while back ago, I seen a guy downtown with a partially full wine bottle having visions he was the messiah. Guess that is going around ... JS Dave is no messiah, but merely a spelling bully. |
Dave Hiel thread jacker
|
dave contiue s his OT hijacking of the NG Actually THis Was An Original Thread Hijacked By His Superior Putziness, Mork Moron
|
All times are GMT +1. The time now is 03:31 AM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
RadioBanter.com