Possessive 's: Rules, Apostrophes and Examples

English often shows possession with 's (apostrophe + s) at the end of the owner. The owner comes first and the thing comes second: Sara's phone means the phone that belongs to Sara. Many languages put the thing first (the phone of Sara), so this word order can feel backwards at first.

We use 's with people and animals most of all: names, family words, jobs and pets. It does not only mean owning things. It also shows relationships (my friend's mother), parts of the body (the baby's hands) and things people make or do (Shakespeare's plays, the doctor's advice).

After the 's, do not use the before the thing: say John's car, not the John's car. You can still use a or the before the owner: the teacher's desk, a friend's house.

The key question is: how many owners are there? Write the owner word in its normal singular or plural form first, then add the apostrophe.

For one owner, add 's: the boy's bike (one boy). For a regular plural owner that already ends in s, add only an apostrophe: the boys' bikes (two or more boys). For irregular plurals that do not end in s, such as children, men, women and people, add 's just like a singular noun: the children's room, women's football. See plural nouns for the irregular forms.

Names that end in s, like James, Charles or Chris, are a small style question. Most modern guides write James's (and say an extra syllable), but some style guides and newspapers write James'. Both are accepted; just be consistent.

When two people own one thing together, put 's on the last name only: Tom and Anna's wedding (one wedding for both). When each person has their own thing, put 's on both names: Tom's and Anna's cars.

We also use 's with time expressions: today's newspaper, last night's game, next year's holiday. With a plural time phrase, use only the apostrophe: two weeks' holiday, ten minutes' walk.

Places such as shops, homes and offices are often shortened. People say at the doctor's, at the baker's or at my mum's, and the word for the place (surgery, shop, house) is understood. In American English you will also hear the simple noun: at the doctor, at the bakery.

With people and animals, use 's: my brother's name, not the name of my brother (this is not wrong, but it sounds very formal). With things, ideas and places, use of: the end of the film, not the film's end in normal speech, and the top of the page, not the page's top.

We also use of when the owner is a long phrase: the car of the woman who lives next door is much easier to understand than a very long 's phrase.

A third choice is to put one noun before another with no 's at all: the kitchen door, a car key, the city centre. This works when the first noun describes a type, not a real owner.

The ending 's has three different jobs in English, so read the sentence carefully. It can be possessive (Ali's bag), a short form of is (Ali's tired = Ali is tired) or a short form of has (Ali's got a cold = Ali has got a cold). Read more about short forms in English contractions.

Possessive pronouns and possessive adjectives never take an apostrophe: its, hers, ours, yours, theirs. The word it's always means it is or it has. See possessive adjectives and pronouns for my, your, mine and yours.

Also, do not use an apostrophe to make a normal plural: one apple, two apples, not two apple's.

In conversation, people use 's all the time to talk about family, friends and plans: my brother's girlfriend, my mum's cooking, Sam's birthday party. You can also use the owner alone when the thing is already clear: Whose coat is this? It's Lucy's.

The question for possession is Whose...? Whose phone is ringing? You can learn more question patterns in question words. For family vocabulary to practise with, see family members vocabulary.