Adding an "apostrophe s" to a word doesn't make it plural

Tweet

For some reason (that I cannot fathom) people have gotten the idea that adding apostrophe s to a word makes it plural. For example:

apple's
family's
table's
the Brady's

WRONG! Adding an apostrophe and the letter 's' does not make a word plural, it makes it possessive. With the examples above:

"The apple's color was dark red."
"My family's surname is hundreds of years old."
"The kitchen table's top is ceramic tile."
"That is Marcia Brady's book."

If you want to make a word plural, you add an s to its end. However, depending on the word, it may be necessary to add an es to its end or change a final y to ies. Again, using the examples above:

"The apples were dark red."
"The families on this block are friendly."
"This store has beautiful dining room tables."
"I'm going to visit the Bradys tomorrow."

Some examples of words that need es added to make them plural:

churches
potatoes
grasses

When making family names, such as Brady, possessive, the placement of the apostrophe depends on whether you're referring to one or more members of the family.

For one member:

"That is Marcia Brady's book."

For more than one member:

"Those are the Bradys' books."

Still not sure which word is correct? Please post a comment below, or contact us on Twitter.

Tweet to @MyPetPeevesBlog