Capitalization/Proper use of apostrophe for omitted letters at start of quotation

Suppose I have a character who can’t pronounce the letter b, and I have him start a sentence with “bananas” in dialogue. Is this correct, using a single quotation mark in front of a pointing away from a: “’ananas! What will I do now?” Arun said. Should I capitalize the a of “ananas”? It’s at … Read more

“One of my friends'” or “One of my friends’s”?

When specifying possession, my understanding is that one adds an apostrophe if modifying a plural ending with an ‘s’, or adds apostrophe followed by an s if not. How does one specify possession of one of a group? For example, when discussing a ball belonging to a friend of mine, should I assume ‘friends’ is … Read more

Where should I put the possessive apostrophe in the construction noun + “Proper Name” + possessed thing

The sentence is as follows: The association “Association Name” requirements. Where should I put the possessive apostrophe? The association “Association Name”‘s requirements. OR The association’s “Association Name” requirements. Answer No matter where you put the apostrophe in that example it’s going to look strange to some people—regardless of whether or not it’s considered correct. In … Read more

My friend, Adam’s birthday or My friend’s, Adam’s birthday

Which one is correct? It is my friend’s, Adam’s birthday. It is my friend, Adam’s birthday. Does the word ‘friend’ need an apostrophe to show possession? Answer If using the nonrestrictive (as discussed in another answer), I would simply rephrase the sentence to avoid the possessive: It’s the birthday of my friend, Adam. With this, … Read more

At the beginning of a sentence in dialogue that sounds incomplete, should you use an apostrophe?

I’m not sure where I picked up this habit, but I think it might be grammatically incorrect. I’m a fiction writer and have just started working on a new novel, so I want to clear this up before I get too far in. Here’s an example, since the question sounds a bit confusing: The speaker … Read more

S and apostrophe’s position

I know the topic has already been discussed, for example, here the accepted answer talks about possessives, but I wonder if my specific case is about possessives or something else. These are the sentences I found in a quiz, choose the right one: I have no more bread I must go to the baker’s I … Read more

Does the apostrophe come before or after the s when the noun is less than one?

I have a noun, “second”, that I need to make possessive in the sentence, It’s like having a second’s slower reflexes. When I make it plural, the apostrophe comes after the s. It’s like having two seconds’ slower reflexes. However, my noun is actually a quarter second. You only use the singular noun when there … Read more

Does a possessive still require an apostrophe when a noun has been omitted to avoid repetition?

This is quite hard to explain (and seemingly impossible to search for on Google) so here’s an example: In relation to dogs and their owners (masters), I saw this sentence: “Their understanding of the subject is as good as their masters.” Does the word “masters” require a possessive apostrophe, even though the noun “understanding” has … Read more