I'm having a little trouble with words that end with S and need apostrophes. Names come up the most often. Do I say Travis' book or Travis's book? I used to think it was the formor, but a friend recently told me that that was a mistake a lot of people made, and it was actually supposed to be done the second way. so which is it?
Actually, it can be done either way for names and words that normally ends with an "s"; it's writer's preference.
I'm with Nilfiry - I've heard it both ways. But I think it is easier to understand when it is Travis' book.
My friend told me it was actually one of her pet peeves - when someone didn't add the extra S. I used to be the same way, but in high school they told me to drop it. Now I'm used to what I'm doing now - only to find out it was wrong again! Or, whatever. XD How confusing.
See this thread for a previous discussion on this subject - happy reading https://www.writingforums.org/showthread.php?t=6265&highlight=apostrophe
hmm. interesting. when i was in high school i was instructed to not add the extra s. ie: Travis' book. etc. i've never heard different. interesting. and BTW... Mightier... i LOVE your avatar! ROFL!!!
LOL Thank you. I have another similar avatar and a cute little signature banner that goes with it, but images aren't allowed in sigs so those get to stay on my hard drive. D: And yeah, I was always always taught to drop the extra S. It's really confusing. DX I don't know where the official rulebook for the English language is, either, so...
When it's a name, and it ends with 's' you'll have to add an 's' after the apostrophe. Like Travis's. But when the word is in plural, for example boxes, you just add an apostrophe. Name = Travis's Plural = Boxes' Well, that's what I was taught...
I was told years ago that big/important names like Moses have an apostrophe at the very end: Moses'. That's what I was taught XD
You should follow the rules set forth by Strunk and White in The Elements of Style, just as your friend did. So, regardless of the final consonant (and in this case it's an "s"), the possessive singular of a noun (including proper names) should always end with an apostrophe and then an "s": > Travis's book The exception, as previously noted, is any ancient name such as Moses, Jesus, or Achilles: > Moses' law
I know some people are fans of Strunk, (Would Strunk's fans be correct also? Or would it be Strunk fans?), but this site gives a non-biased approach. Click here for the article on apostrophes. It gives Strunk's opinion, and other opinions, such as New York Public Library's Guide to Style and Usage.
