Quick Lesson:

[deird_lj]

A NOUN that owns something...
...uses an apostrophe.

Such as:
- the dog's bone
- the house's chimney
- the newspaper's typeface

The same holds true for proper nouns:
- Megan's cup
- Tom's ears

And for abstract nouns:
- love's desire
- envy's true nature


A PRONOUN that owns something...
...doesn't use an apostrophe.

Such as:
- his hands
- her passion for music
- its colour
- whose book?


If a PRONOUN has an apostrophe...
...it's a contraction.

It's means "it is". Who's means "who is".

PLEASE LEARN THIS. IT'S DRIVING ME CRAZY.

Comments

[danielrh.livejournal.com]

Personally I think it depends on the situation.
Outside of business/professional writing, I don't have a problem with people getting it wrong.
---
The above text is a natural product. Slight variations
in spelling and grammar enhance its individual character & beauty
and in no way are to be considered flaws or defects.

[deird1]

Yeah, I have different standards in different contexts. In business writing, I think they should re-write the document and actually do it properly.


In normal internet-ness, it just REALLY bugs me. Especially because I find myself reading stuff that ends up sounding like:
"I asked who is ball it was and they said it was there is."

...which makes me want to punch things.

[lavastar.livejournal.com]

Oh Jesus that sentence makes me want to cry.

[roccondilrinon.livejournal.com]

*shrug* The words are spelt differently for a reason. You can't even excuse getting it wrong as laziness, because it's a simple thing to remember and by our age anyone who has been educated in an English-speaking country has been taught to remember it. It's a case of wanton ignorance, which is never a Good Thing, and is too often a sign of the same on a broader level.



Those with learning disabilities which make this sort of thing genuinely difficult are of course exempt.

I do agree that it's much more important in a professional context, but that doesn't mean it's unimportant outside of one.

[deird1]

anyone who has been educated in an English-speaking country has been taught to remember it.

That kinda depends on how good your local schools are...