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Klarinet Archive - Posting 000090.txt from 2000/12
From: Roger Shilcock <roger.shilcock@-----.uk>
Subj: Re: [kl] Apostrophe
Date: Sat, 2 Dec 2000 05:43:28 -0500
Over here, the "Tony's" sort of apostrophe gets called "the greengrocers'
apostrophe" -- because of the prevalence of signs in their shops reading
"spring green's", "brussel's sprout's", "runner bean's", and, even, "tomatoe's"
(no kidding..).
Roger S.
In message <bf.946438b.275a2143@-----.org writes:
> Neil wrote,
> <<You're clinging to grade-school dogma,........simply tacking an 's' onto
> the end of a proper noun is also incorrect relative to the plural form ,
> i.e.; Tonys.
> The key issue here is context, not a set of dogmatic rules that were set in
> concrete by Ms. Wizbicky back in the second grade.
> In the case of "War of the Tony's," the context
> makes it plain that the writer intended to pluralize a proper noun, and she
> "properly" did so. Get over it.>>
>
> Are you just winding us up, Neil?
>
> In case not, I spoke to Ms. Wizbicky [now retired] and she quoted the
> following...
>
> Regarding plurals of proper nouns ending in 'y':-
> Example:-
> <<The three Marys at the Crucifixion.>>
>
> Regarding the use of the apostrophe:-
> It "may occasionally be used before a plural 's' as a device for avoiding
> confusion, but this should not be extended beyond what is necessary for that
> purpose... "
>
> Fowler's Modern English Usage 2nd Edition Pub. OUP p. 457 and p.467
>
> Now, back to Guy Legere's reeds.
>
> Arthur Acheson
>
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