Understanding Apostrophes for Joint Ownership

Apostrophes for Joint Ownership

Understanding how to correctly use apostrophes to show joint ownership is important in writing. This punctuation mark indicates that two or more individuals share ownership of an object or objects. It is crucial to place apostrophes properly to avoid confusion and ensure clarity in your writing.

Example Sentences

Consider the following sentences:

1. Marina and Kayla’s toys are under the bed.
2. Marina’s and Kayla toys are under the bed.
3. Marina and Kaylas’ toys are under the bed.
4. Marinas and Kayla’s toys are under the bed.

Correct Usage

Which sentence correctly uses apostrophes to show joint ownership?

The 3rd sentence is correct because of the punctuation.

The sentence that correctly uses apostrophes to show joint ownership is the following one: Marina and Kayla's toys are under the bed. Explanation: The sentence above contains a compound subject. That is, two simple subjects have been joined by a coordinating conjunction and share the same predicate. In this case, the subjects own the same toys. If both nouns part of a compound subject own the same thing, the apostrophe is placed after the last noun (Kayla's).