'So I watched thi's video and I decided to po'st a comment, I know exactly how to u'se apostrophe's and alway's have, 'so that i's why I po'sted thi's comment.
All I see are woodburned signs on houses that are doing it wrong:
"The Smith's"
Just one Smith? Nope, it is a family. You can say "The Smiths" for a plural or "The Smiths' Place" for a possessive plural, but PLEASE, stop putting signs under your mailboxes that make you look stupid! And woodburning crafters, stop writing this way! Because of your professional position, people assume you're doing it right.
A great video and I love this series but "photo's", contrary to what you stated in the video, is correct, due to contraction from "photographs". The same holds true with "'phone" from "telephone".
I think that most people using "photo's," however, are not doing so because it's a contraction but rather because they think plural nouns need apostrophes.
@HonoraryCheesehead Josephmil is wrong. "Photo's" is not a contraction for "photographs." "Photo" is short for "photograph," so "photos" is the plural of "photo." There is no "phone's" for "telephones," either.
@josephmil123 Since when was there a contraction for "photographs?" "Photo" is already short for "photograph," and the plural of "photo" is "photos," much in the same way "phones" is an acceptable alternative for "telephones."
@NintendoArielle OK - I admit that it's really uncommon for some our age to use it in that way, but loads of older people whom I know use it in that way because it's in their lifetimes that they've seen it change from "photographs" to "photo(')s", and seeing as it is a direct contraction, it is logical to use an apostrophe. Language changes and in fifty years time, this will all but died out; in the meantime, it could be that some people know more about the grammar than those 'correcting' them!
@josephmil123 Honestly, I've never heard of "photo's" used as a contraction, especially considering that "photos" is already short for "photographs." My dad is 62, so I'll ask him if this was ever the case. Either way, most people who write "photo's" are doing it because they simply don't know how to use apostrophes correctly.
Thank's for makeing this. Im definantly sick of people who dont have a grasp on spelling and grammer- I mean I cant believe all the error's I see on the internet these days. What a bunch of looser's!!!1!
It's ironic that a video for the proper use of an apostrophe is entitled "The Misuse of Apostrophe's (Steve's Grammatical Observations #2)" totally defying the point of the video... in the title. rofl xD but it's a good video though.
The abuse this poor little symbol goes through is horrific, it's rampant. It bugs the hell out of me, especially "mothers' day" it's not "mother's day"... it's plural possessive, belonging to all mothers.
It's not just on the internet. I see it every day in the real world on signs. It makes me cringe every time. They really should know better. And where's the proofreader? They deserve to be fired.
oh, but i'm all into the internet speak! lol. no really, I'm a grammar snob but I'm also a grammar heretic. I think you've inspired me to defend internet language in a new video!
Steve, I was with you right up until you said it was acceptable to omit the apostrophe in places where it should be used. That's just as bad as using it where it shouldn't be.
homophones are my biggest pet peeve... there and their, your and you're, and to and too (rare cases of two, too). those mistakes are very common, especially your and you're, which gets annoying. also "should of" makes me laugh
Thank you! OMG, I see Facebook posts from friends of mine who are teachers - who are scattering apostrophes like dust bunnies. Sprinkle them on everything.... Will be sending this around - much appreciated.
I yelled at my friend in caps lock about how much I agreed with you. Thank you, now I can bring this to the attention of every moron who has never passed the third grade.
In my experience, which includes fluency in Spanish and familiarity with the romantic latin-based languages in general, fruit can refer both to the plural and the singular. "the fruits of one's labor" and in spanish, void of any symbolic or metaphorical use, "los frutos de un arbol" (the fruits of a tree)
actually, that would be "el fruto de un arbol" because as far as I know, the word "frutos" does not exist in the Spanish language. I suppose that much like in the Japanese language, a certain word does not change if it means to be singular and plural, such as samurai or ninja (not samurais and ninjas). Please correct me if I'm wrong.
I've heard spoken "los frutos" in spanish (South America), but I suppose he could have been wrong too. He was referring to the specimens of fruit as opposed to the flowers or leaves or whatever. I dont think you can bring asian languages into this discussion, they dont pluralize anything do they?
just because you were taught this doesn't mean it's right. foods, fruits, peoples, meats, etc - they are correct depending on usage. you use those forms if you're emphasizing variety. example: "i love asian fruits." this emphasizes that there are many different kinds of asian fruit. "i love asian fruit" wouldn't be wrong, it just wouldn't be as specific.
Well that doesn't mean anything. The dictionary just reports on what is in common usage, not what is "correct." Fifty years ago "blog" wasn't in the dictionary, but it became commonly used...
Excellent, however you do not deal with the problem of possessive plurals or possession where a word ends in a double s, e.g. the mattresss cover has. Or all of these mattresses covers have. You never see a triple s in this context is it right or wrong?
Do the same thing you do with any word that ends in S, plural or singular. Add the apostrophe to the end of the word but don't add an S after it, e.g. Moses' sandals.
How about doing a video about "can" vs. "may". Many people are unaware of the difference. For example, "Can I speak with Sue?" should be, "May I speak with Sue?" If my father answered the phone and someone asked, "Can I talk to Sue" he'd reply, "I don't know, can you?"
Something else that bugs the crap out of me--I'm an English major and huge grammar nazi--is when people say "anyways." Perhaps, you could do a video on that. :)
I may have a partial explanation for this problem. The internet is full of Dutch people. In Dutch, pluralization rules are fairly similar to English, except that most words that end in a vowel are pluralized using an apostrophe + s. So "foto's" (photos), "komma's" (commas) and even "baby's" (babies) are all correctly spelled Dutch words.
Ironically, the 'possessive apostrophe' is optional in Dutch: "John's boek" and "Johns boek" are both valid (and mean "John's book").
i think that's right. Of course these rules are somewhat arbitrary. Some person or people thought it LOOKED funny to write "Nicholas's car" , so they just went over everyone's heads like grammer gods or something, but what's done is done, and there aren't so many silly rules that we shouldn't get most right.
If it was up to me, i would have allowed NO contractions. It just confuses the apostrophe thing. Of course, that would mean I would have had to cut out half of this reply to make it fit.
Oh man, this is one of my biggest pet peeve's! I see thing's like, "Bring your friend's!" and I'm thinking, "Bring your friend's what??" (By the way, the misuse here was on purpose, I'm not one of those dork's.)
Your observation is true, but I wish you would have addressed the number 1 misuse of the apostrophe: the its, it's conundrum. In this case, it is only the conjunction and not the possessive that uses the apostrophe. This is the one that nobody gets right.
Correct use: It's amazing that no one gets it right.
thanks for the input. Since I put out this video, I've given the apostrophe a lot of thought. I may do a second video on the apostrophe. but my conclusion may shock you!
Point of clarification: apostrophes can be used to pluralize single letters. For example, "there are eight e's in this sentence." In this case, _not_ including an apostrophe between "e" and "s" would make the construction unclear.
OK, maybe it's further back in the list, I haven't checked. Is the title of this video supposed to be ironic? Please tell me that it's not a genuine mistake.
Oh my god, thank's mate, i thought i was going crazy, seeing apostrophe's everywhere. Its pretty sad, isnt it? Such a common, lame, lame, lame mistake...
I rarely comment on Youtube videos, but I wanted to let you know that your series thus far is highly appreciated and I would love for it to continue indefinitely.
I actually think the pluralization with an apostrophe stems from bad habit, ONLY when typing. I mean you only see these kinds of mistakes on the internet or when it is typed, but never when it is just plainly written.
Yes, but it's not as big of a deal as you make it out to be. Is it ungrammatical? Yes. Is it a degeneration of writing skills? No, it is just a common mistake that occurs because of typing habits, not a person's grammatical competency.
One of my favorite hobbies is to make note of how folks decorate their houses in the suburbs and exurbs. Often there is a sign in the yard that says, The Horton's (or another family name replacing Horton of course).
Wouldn't that be correct? "The Horton's" might be understood as "The Horton's Home" or "The Horton's Family" maybe? I do suppose it may be incorrect if it is considered "The Hortons live here".
Cillianlyons, I always wondered how the word "won't" came to be. Willn't is such an interesting word. :O) I wonder whyn't we don't contract it like that.
I agree with you 100%. I am an old school English guy and those superfluous apostrophes (I call 'em "surplostrophes") drive me nuts. I erase them if they are on a clean erase or chalk board!
Why does the word "observations" on the closing screen have an apostrophe on it? Isn't that a plural where no apostrophe should be used? Correct me if I'm wrong.
If I remember correctly, you can use an apostrophe for plurals that would otherwise be confusing and for abbreviations of years. For example: A's, 80's, '09, etc.
Well, technically, years should be 80s and 90s, but you're right with pluralizing things like letters. That is, you need an apostrophe with things like, "The word 'Philippines' has two P/p's." These are acceptable, and Steve fails to mention this. Then again, if everyone starts doing it (as it seems to be the case), then eventually it will become acceptable.
you're right, that was a loophole in my argument. There is also the matter of "the food's on the table" which i guess is technically a contraction but not the same kind of contraction as those I mentioned.
I want to see him rage about the "should of" error. It isn't I should of tied my shoe! It is I should HAVE tied my shoe!! Thumbs up =)
flyerfanatic93 10 months ago 2
Misuse of apostrophes is a great way to announce to people on web forums "I'm a little bit dumb".
archipeldesign 11 months ago
lmao dude you're the man
RAMONDlAZ 11 months ago
'So I watched thi's video and I decided to po'st a comment, I know exactly how to u'se apostrophe's and alway's have, 'so that i's why I po'sted thi's comment.
alexman951 1 year ago 2
PREACH, Steve!! I am so damn irritated by the blatant misuse of poor Mr. Apostrophe.
pweifenbach 1 year ago
apostrophe's? really?
twin2tx2 1 year ago
@twin2tx2
He did that on purpose though. To prove his point.
pweifenbach 1 year ago
No, don't leave it out!
MrBenjaminalex 1 year ago
i totally agree w/ u Steve.not to mention you are a pleasure to watch and easy on the eyes cutie.
Pisces31660 1 year ago
All I see are woodburned signs on houses that are doing it wrong:
"The Smith's"
Just one Smith? Nope, it is a family. You can say "The Smiths" for a plural or "The Smiths' Place" for a possessive plural, but PLEASE, stop putting signs under your mailboxes that make you look stupid! And woodburning crafters, stop writing this way! Because of your professional position, people assume you're doing it right.
Kiddalee 1 year ago
"The Misuse of Apostrophe's"
Classic.
jdswiney 1 year ago
Steve, you are my hero!
comidamexicana 1 year ago
A great video and I love this series but "photo's", contrary to what you stated in the video, is correct, due to contraction from "photographs". The same holds true with "'phone" from "telephone".
josephmil123 1 year ago
@josephmil123
I think that most people using "photo's," however, are not doing so because it's a contraction but rather because they think plural nouns need apostrophes.
HonoraryCheesehead 1 year ago
@HonoraryCheesehead Josephmil is wrong. "Photo's" is not a contraction for "photographs." "Photo" is short for "photograph," so "photos" is the plural of "photo." There is no "phone's" for "telephones," either.
NintendoArielle 1 year ago
@josephmil123 Since when was there a contraction for "photographs?" "Photo" is already short for "photograph," and the plural of "photo" is "photos," much in the same way "phones" is an acceptable alternative for "telephones."
NintendoArielle 1 year ago
@NintendoArielle OK - I admit that it's really uncommon for some our age to use it in that way, but loads of older people whom I know use it in that way because it's in their lifetimes that they've seen it change from "photographs" to "photo(')s", and seeing as it is a direct contraction, it is logical to use an apostrophe. Language changes and in fifty years time, this will all but died out; in the meantime, it could be that some people know more about the grammar than those 'correcting' them!
josephmil123 1 year ago
@josephmil123 Honestly, I've never heard of "photo's" used as a contraction, especially considering that "photos" is already short for "photographs." My dad is 62, so I'll ask him if this was ever the case. Either way, most people who write "photo's" are doing it because they simply don't know how to use apostrophes correctly.
NintendoArielle 1 year ago
Thank you Steve
digitalwizard666 1 year ago
Nice. You might like The Apostrophe Song on youtube
Cool1000Rules 1 year ago
Tell 'em, Steve! (another correct usage of the apostrophe-- 'em for "them", although colloquial)
mooseboy18 1 year ago
@mooseboy18 good one!
Plomomedia 1 year ago
100% true.
markrskinner 1 year ago
Thank's for makeing this. Im definantly sick of people who dont have a grasp on spelling and grammer- I mean I cant believe all the error's I see on the internet these days. What a bunch of looser's!!!1!
jjp3kjc 1 year ago 2
I'm not alone!
nixthetiger 1 year ago
It's ironic that a video for the proper use of an apostrophe is entitled "The Misuse of Apostrophe's (Steve's Grammatical Observations #2)" totally defying the point of the video... in the title. rofl xD but it's a good video though.
The abuse this poor little symbol goes through is horrific, it's rampant. It bugs the hell out of me, especially "mothers' day" it's not "mother's day"... it's plural possessive, belonging to all mothers.
Rant over
JederLacht 2 years ago
This video is hilarious. I love it. Thank you for making this!
michkay1 2 years ago
You forgot to mention not to use apostrophes in posessive pronouns as in its (belonging to it).
TemporalSpleen 2 years ago
true. i did another video on its.
Plomomedia 2 years ago
Love these vids, but there are a few times when you do use apostrophes in plurals, such as "mind your p's and q's" and decade names (e.g. 80's).
elpymppe 2 years ago
@elpymppe Actually it's '80s, as in 1980s. Why? Because the apostrophe takes the place of 19 :-)
braincrisp1 1 year ago
i find your videos very interesting and helpful...i use some of them in my presentation in graduate school...thanks
noajz09 2 years ago
Steve's Grammatical Observations ends with
Steve's Grammatical Observation's
so funny !
arena94130 2 years ago
I'm sure you meant, "apostrophes." Without an apostrophe.
I'm going to give two of your YouTube grammatical clip links to my students...but not the ones with swearing.
LisaBandFriends 2 years ago
It is interesting to see how similar mistakes affect different languages... Anyway thanx again, your videos are a great help for non-mother tongue :D
lizzinablack 2 years ago
thanks. more to come hopefully this year.
Plomomedia 2 years ago
It's not just on the internet. I see it every day in the real world on signs. It makes me cringe every time. They really should know better. And where's the proofreader? They deserve to be fired.
autumnsylver 2 years ago
@autumnsylver
It's even on iPods (or at least the version that I own) - "To do's"
sept1ne 2 years ago
Amen- the misuse of apostrophes should be punishable by law! I can't stand this internet "newspeek"
TBaggCheli0s 2 years ago
oh, but i'm all into the internet speak! lol. no really, I'm a grammar snob but I'm also a grammar heretic. I think you've inspired me to defend internet language in a new video!
Plomomedia 2 years ago
Steve, I was with you right up until you said it was acceptable to omit the apostrophe in places where it should be used. That's just as bad as using it where it shouldn't be.
SpeakerHelen 2 years ago
I'm appealing to the lowest common denominator. Better not to show cards you don't have than to show ones that wont win!
Plomomedia 2 years ago
homophones are my biggest pet peeve... there and their, your and you're, and to and too (rare cases of two, too). those mistakes are very common, especially your and you're, which gets annoying. also "should of" makes me laugh
dnguyen806 2 years ago
awesome video. I am using it in a mini lesson i have to teach in my english class.
TheOnlyOakleySavage 2 years ago
Thank you! OMG, I see Facebook posts from friends of mine who are teachers - who are scattering apostrophes like dust bunnies. Sprinkle them on everything.... Will be sending this around - much appreciated.
clemmiez 2 years ago
Hey, Steve! I teach English at a community college in California and tomorrow my class is watching your video.Thank you.
necrofinger 2 years ago
Comment removed
moonwalkn1 2 years ago
bravo, it drives me nuts
moonwalkn1 2 years ago
People are idiots.
We should round them up and beat up with giant apostrophes.
Abedeuss 2 years ago
got my vote!
moonwalkn1 2 years ago
I yelled at my friend in caps lock about how much I agreed with you. Thank you, now I can bring this to the attention of every moron who has never passed the third grade.
Shhteve 2 years ago
Is "it's" always a contraction? What about possessive? i.e. "I like it's color." or "It's humor amuses me."
jlukken 2 years ago
The pronoun you're talking about is "its". It's a separate pronoun and therefore doesn't require an apostrophe.
velation 2 years ago
you only use IT ' S when you are saying IT IS....IT 'S HOT OUTSIDE...the possessive use does not use an apostrophe... ITS COLOR IS BEAUTIFUL
moonwalkn1 2 years ago
Thank YOU for this!!!!!!!!
It's about time -common usage doesn't make it correct-it just makes us look stupid-
in addition, here is a short list of words that are also already plural that need no "s", at least as I was taught in 4th grade.
food,fruit,people,meat,yogurt,cereal,art,insurance,ect-Have you been to the grocery store?!?UGH!!!
Thanks again! I will reiterate: common usage doesn't make it correct-it just makes us look stupid-
artypants0 2 years ago
wrong...what are you going to say, 'MANY FRUIT ARE PROCESSED AT THIS LOCATION' , or 'SCHOOL OF THE ART' ?
moonwalkn1 2 years ago
NOT wrong-Many TYPES of Fruit are processed at this location
School of ART
-so many people use "arts' and "fruits"(among others) it has become accepted use-
common usage doesn't make it correct
artypants0 2 years ago
In my experience, which includes fluency in Spanish and familiarity with the romantic latin-based languages in general, fruit can refer both to the plural and the singular. "the fruits of one's labor" and in spanish, void of any symbolic or metaphorical use, "los frutos de un arbol" (the fruits of a tree)
Plomomedia 2 years ago
I think school can also be singular or plural:
"schools of thought" or "public schools"
Plomomedia 2 years ago
actually, that would be "el fruto de un arbol" because as far as I know, the word "frutos" does not exist in the Spanish language. I suppose that much like in the Japanese language, a certain word does not change if it means to be singular and plural, such as samurai or ninja (not samurais and ninjas). Please correct me if I'm wrong.
BleedForTheWorld 2 years ago
I've heard spoken "los frutos" in spanish (South America), but I suppose he could have been wrong too. He was referring to the specimens of fruit as opposed to the flowers or leaves or whatever. I dont think you can bring asian languages into this discussion, they dont pluralize anything do they?
Plomomedia 2 years ago
just because you were taught this doesn't mean it's right. foods, fruits, peoples, meats, etc - they are correct depending on usage. you use those forms if you're emphasizing variety. example: "i love asian fruits." this emphasizes that there are many different kinds of asian fruit. "i love asian fruit" wouldn't be wrong, it just wouldn't be as specific.
dnguyen806 2 years ago
Steve's grammatical oversight's.
dLimboStick 2 years ago
Thank you, Steve! You've spoken out about one of my biggest pet peeves.
LadyWeasel 2 years ago 8
Let's hope the Internet slangs die!
Japanologe 2 years ago
Haha, funny.
Subscribed!
ILuvEire 2 years ago
should've isn't a real contraction x=
departedcake 2 years ago
Why? Should have...should've...
ILuvEire 2 years ago
it's not in the dictionary
departedcake 2 years ago
Well that doesn't mean anything. The dictionary just reports on what is in common usage, not what is "correct." Fifty years ago "blog" wasn't in the dictionary, but it became commonly used...
Anyway, should've is in my dictionary.
ILuvEire 2 years ago
cool what dictionary's that? must be made of win
departedcake 2 years ago
dictionary is not the laws of english and can be out-dated.
out-dated dictionary does not include many new English words we use today, including the word "noob"
GenerationDarkness 2 years ago
isn't it going to be added?
departedcake 2 years ago
not sure
GenerationDarkness 2 years ago
Awesome! :D
thank's
hehe - just kidding!
Thanks!
sonus03 2 years ago
Boys who like grammar are hot. Boys who are into descriptive rather than prescriptive grammar are hotter. (Sorry.)
methylsoy 2 years ago
take two of this, and call me in the morning.
Plomomedia 2 years ago
Partitive error?
methylsoy 2 years ago
DVD's, CD's, & PC's
It's like people are afraid that if they don't add one, others might not know what they are talking about LOL
MRCAB 2 years ago
great videos! i really enjoy all of them, and your editing is fantastic!
derekfilms 2 years ago
Excellent, however you do not deal with the problem of possessive plurals or possession where a word ends in a double s, e.g. the mattresss cover has. Or all of these mattresses covers have. You never see a triple s in this context is it right or wrong?
charlesmannering 2 years ago
Do the same thing you do with any word that ends in S, plural or singular. Add the apostrophe to the end of the word but don't add an S after it, e.g. Moses' sandals.
moshaw2004 2 years ago
Thanks for clearing that one up for me. The possession of a plural is always slightly confusing now I know the answer.
charlesmannering 2 years ago
anyone notice what's wrong with the title?
i like touches like that..
jackhartcup 2 years ago 10
How about doing a video about "can" vs. "may". Many people are unaware of the difference. For example, "Can I speak with Sue?" should be, "May I speak with Sue?" If my father answered the phone and someone asked, "Can I talk to Sue" he'd reply, "I don't know, can you?"
dorotwhy 2 years ago 2
I know exactly what you mean. I hate it when people use apostrophe's in improper place's.
seniorfrito 2 years ago
lmao I love how you misuse the apostrophe at the end
Saintbonehead 2 years ago
The misuse is even more frequent in german. -.-
iDave22 2 years ago
These are some nice observation's youve made.
vinnv226 2 years ago 2
Something else that bugs the crap out of me--I'm an English major and huge grammar nazi--is when people say "anyways." Perhaps, you could do a video on that. :)
FoolishGames1995 2 years ago
I may have a partial explanation for this problem. The internet is full of Dutch people. In Dutch, pluralization rules are fairly similar to English, except that most words that end in a vowel are pluralized using an apostrophe + s. So "foto's" (photos), "komma's" (commas) and even "baby's" (babies) are all correctly spelled Dutch words.
Ironically, the 'possessive apostrophe' is optional in Dutch: "John's boek" and "Johns boek" are both valid (and mean "John's book").
JustAMinuteOYourTime 2 years ago
wow, i had no idea... fascinating! thanks
Plomomedia 2 years ago
I agree completely. Perfectly put! Great vid!
ColF1978 2 years ago 2
Steve: PLEASE correct the title - it is driving me crazy.
I know it's meant to be a joke, but it's killing me.
If you refuse to correct it, i will ...
... I will post COMMENT'S
You can take that apostrophe as a threat.
Philc2 2 years ago
that's hilarious. I will most likely do a new video on the apostrophe. I agree with you that the rules are somewhat arbitrary.
Plomomedia 2 years ago
I'm penalised at Uni if I use them in the essays. But internet is not serious :)
britnano 3 years ago
On the contrary, the internet is indeed serious business.
0platypus0venom0 3 years ago
Observation's!...?
Are you serious?
How about, "Today's Mail" when in fact Today's Thursday?
mozybyte 3 years ago
I'm not trying to be a wiseass but it can be an apostrophe when the subject ends with a 'S'. Like Nicholas' car.
am I right?
jagheterolle 3 years ago
i think that's right. Of course these rules are somewhat arbitrary. Some person or people thought it LOOKED funny to write "Nicholas's car" , so they just went over everyone's heads like grammer gods or something, but what's done is done, and there aren't so many silly rules that we shouldn't get most right.
If it was up to me, i would have allowed NO contractions. It just confuses the apostrophe thing. Of course, that would mean I would have had to cut out half of this reply to make it fit.
Philc2 2 years ago
Sorry, was that "Best Lesbian Movie's"?
Syst1mZ 3 years ago
also if a group owns something the apostrophe goes after E.G. the dogs' bones the group of dogs have a bone
samayman 3 years ago
Oh man, this is one of my biggest pet peeve's! I see thing's like, "Bring your friend's!" and I'm thinking, "Bring your friend's what??" (By the way, the misuse here was on purpose, I'm not one of those dork's.)
BLE320 3 years ago
Your observation is true, but I wish you would have addressed the number 1 misuse of the apostrophe: the its, it's conundrum. In this case, it is only the conjunction and not the possessive that uses the apostrophe. This is the one that nobody gets right.
Correct use: It's amazing that no one gets it right.
Incorrect: That tree just lost it's leaves.
mark082 3 years ago
thanks for the input. Since I put out this video, I've given the apostrophe a lot of thought. I may do a second video on the apostrophe. but my conclusion may shock you!
Plomomedia 3 years ago
Gerard says "THANK YOU"
rodregis 3 years ago
abuse of..."" quotes!!!! grrr. please address it!
fighting4air 3 years ago
Have you seen the site unnessary quotes dott comm? You might enjoy that.
thedailyenglishshow 3 years ago
(Had to add the extra letters or YT wouldn't accept it).
thedailyenglishshow 3 years ago
that blog was funny.
Plomomedia 3 years ago
About to say, thedailyenglishshow addressed this!
Check it out! Very funny stuff. Worth a good mud slinging.
fighting4air 3 years ago
What about in sir names? O'Brien? O'Connor?
Wowy71 3 years ago
Hey Steve. Is it "perfectly acceptable" to split an infinitive? People in glass houses.... :)
stephenboyes 3 years ago
point taken. i have to admit i didnt know that was grammatically incorrect.
Plomomedia 3 years ago
I like splitting infinitives.
thedailyenglishshow 3 years ago
i know... it was a joke...
zabahaba 3 years ago
Point of clarification: apostrophes can be used to pluralize single letters. For example, "there are eight e's in this sentence." In this case, _not_ including an apostrophe between "e" and "s" would make the construction unclear.
rlue 3 years ago
bwhahahahaah, so did you get the first part of it zabahaba?
POSSESSION - CORRECT
Bob's car.
Just keep watching the first 20 seconds of the video until it sinks in.
rodregis 3 years ago
but it says Steve's grammatical observation's at the end o_O
zabahaba 3 years ago
Did you even watch the video
jotungafadur 3 years ago
uhhhm, yes. why are you asking?
zabahaba 3 years ago
troll'd
t93sho 3 years ago
Excellent. Nice editing.
thedailyenglishshow 3 years ago
OK, maybe it's further back in the list, I haven't checked. Is the title of this video supposed to be ironic? Please tell me that it's not a genuine mistake.
dramaeco 3 years ago
Oh my god, thank's mate, i thought i was going crazy, seeing apostrophe's everywhere. Its pretty sad, isnt it? Such a common, lame, lame, lame mistake...
lamez0r 3 years ago
Great serie's, man! Keep it up's!
Explosivokewl 3 years ago
Dude you are hillarious. I love this.
josheaton 3 years ago
Love the ending screen.
orangespiff 3 years ago
I rarely comment on Youtube videos, but I wanted to let you know that your series thus far is highly appreciated and I would love for it to continue indefinitely.
shreveyboy 3 years ago 3
I actually think the pluralization with an apostrophe stems from bad habit, ONLY when typing. I mean you only see these kinds of mistakes on the internet or when it is typed, but never when it is just plainly written.
Elestia 3 years ago
good point, but how often are things actually written now? I dont think i've put pen to paper in at least 3 years.
Plomomedia 3 years ago
Yes, but it's not as big of a deal as you make it out to be. Is it ungrammatical? Yes. Is it a degeneration of writing skills? No, it is just a common mistake that occurs because of typing habits, not a person's grammatical competency.
At least, I hope so. :V
Elestia 3 years ago
One of my favorite hobbies is to make note of how folks decorate their houses in the suburbs and exurbs. Often there is a sign in the yard that says, The Horton's (or another family name replacing Horton of course).
Aimless53704 3 years ago
Wouldn't that be correct? "The Horton's" might be understood as "The Horton's Home" or "The Horton's Family" maybe? I do suppose it may be incorrect if it is considered "The Hortons live here".
dorotwhy 2 years ago
down here in mexico, it's already a problem like taco's, burrito's, burger's, etc
legrafito 3 years ago
Then don't go to the Netherlands. Adding an apostrophe is how they pluralize words. Haw!
Aimless53704 3 years ago
amusing vidz, grammar nazis can still suxit my cock's tho is is
vidz4funz 3 years ago
You seem pretty baked in all your videos.
lostbizzo 3 years ago 4
The exception is when you need it for clarity, such as:
"I work with seven other CSR's."
"I got four A's on my report card."
"I'd prefer you include @'s in your email addresses"
Both 1960s and 1960's are considered acceptable in most circles.
landosamorm 3 years ago
Acceptable, but I dislike it. If you use capitalization skillfully with acronyms, a small case s pluralizes nicely without the confusing apostrophe.
Aimless53704 3 years ago
I love you.
clamoring 3 years ago 3
Keep making these video's; they're hilarious!
SnatchSimonizer 3 years ago
In working with contractions it is possible to use an apostrophe for:
isn't = is not
can't = can not
shouldn't = should not
therefore can we not contract will not into willn't?
will not = willn't
cillianlyons 3 years ago
Will not = Won't
eifersucht12a 3 years ago
Cillianlyons, I always wondered how the word "won't" came to be. Willn't is such an interesting word. :O) I wonder whyn't we don't contract it like that.
dorotwhy 2 years ago
Interesting that you didn't mention "it is" = "it's" or "he has" = "he's", since I'd expect those are where the root of the misconceptions is.
crazydavidsmith 3 years ago
lol good job on the last "Observations" =]
screwedazn 3 years ago
Comment removed
1205987 3 years ago
Best I've seen is "new's agent" on the shop front of a newsagent (British English for newsstand).
nicepaul 3 years ago
That's almost correct - it's a nice illustration of how language changes. `News' used to be plural. So, I suppose, it should have been news' paper.
But since it's a safe bet that the owner of the shop didn't know that - it's just plain wrong. The infamous grocer's apostrophe.
Either quite interesting or stultifyingly boring. :o)
acromel 3 years ago
I agree with you 100%. I am an old school English guy and those superfluous apostrophes (I call 'em "surplostrophes") drive me nuts. I erase them if they are on a clean erase or chalk board!
johnsidle 3 years ago
"surplostrophes"
That is one of the ugliest words I've ever heard.
I salute you, Sir! :o)
Bonus points for not saying 110% - but now we're veering into the uncounted realm of numeracy :o)
acromel 3 years ago
thi's i's hilariou's
ferretfreak111 3 years ago
Even worse is the use of an apostrophe in things like the 90's or the 1950's, because that is a mistake you see even in major publications.
crackerdangerous 3 years ago
Why does the word "observations" on the closing screen have an apostrophe on it? Isn't that a plural where no apostrophe should be used? Correct me if I'm wrong.
fiascofandave 3 years ago
It's a joke.
michaeljb3 3 years ago 2
ITS a joke
DarkAzoroth 3 years ago
It's called "mocking" or "making fun of" those that do.
kokuou 3 years ago
No you're right.
blinknbcr 3 years ago
But he's doing it on purpose lol
blinknbcr 3 years ago
It was a joke, wasn't in the first screen lol
redteamdarkspear 3 years ago
Got me thinking... might the apostrophe be the new semicolon? :o
-Kev, The Virts
kevhonline 3 years ago
no, but the comma definitely is the new semi colon. (it's called a "comma splice" by the academic types)
Plomomedia 3 years ago
Hahah, I like "Steve's Grammatical Observation's" at the end. Clever.
Cowmanbob 3 years ago
Another one that few people are aware of is the misuse of apostrophes in the word "its".
Apostrophes generally denote possession, except when a similar word is produced as a contraction: e.g. "it is" --> it's
So when the dog wags its tail, "its" comes without an apostrophe.
TrenchantAtheist 3 years ago
If I remember correctly, you can use an apostrophe for plurals that would otherwise be confusing and for abbreviations of years. For example: A's, 80's, '09, etc.
lupinsmyman 3 years ago
Well, technically, years should be 80s and 90s, but you're right with pluralizing things like letters. That is, you need an apostrophe with things like, "The word 'Philippines' has two P/p's." These are acceptable, and Steve fails to mention this. Then again, if everyone starts doing it (as it seems to be the case), then eventually it will become acceptable.
kokuou 3 years ago
you're right, that was a loophole in my argument. There is also the matter of "the food's on the table" which i guess is technically a contraction but not the same kind of contraction as those I mentioned.
Plomomedia 3 years ago
Thank you for the correction. I was unsure about the years. :)
lupinsmyman 3 years ago
You should all mind your p's qnd q's.
zachshmack 3 years ago
Misuse of the apostrophe is one of the most annyoing things that I encounter when reading what someone else wrote.
acrjobs 3 years ago
haha! genius! a pretty face for the campaign for grammar :-P
postmodernteatowel 3 years ago
I did not notice this apostrophe problem. I will keep my eyes open for it.
He needs to do something on "ain't" if he has not done so already. "Ain't" is not a word. You mean, "isn't".
Sakura1CAS 3 years ago