Common misuses of the apostrophe

No apostrophe with nouns that are not possessive

Example sentence with editing. Original sentence: Some outpatient's are given special parking permits. Revised sentence: Some outpatients are given special parking permits. Explanation: The apostrophe was deleted in the plural noun “outpatients.

No apostrophe in the possessive pronouns its, whose, his, hers, ours, yours, and theirs

Example sentence with editing. Original sentence: Each area has it's own conference room. Revised sentence: Each area has its own conference room. Explanation: The apostrophe was deleted in the possessive pronoun “its.

It’s means “it is.” The possessive pronoun its contains no apostrophe despite the fact that it is possessive.

Exercise: The apostrophe 1

Exercise: The apostrophe 2