Apostrophe with a Plural Possessive
Question
The students' projects were displayed in the auditorium for the science fair.
Answer choices
- NO CHANGE
- student's
- students's
- students
A Correct answer: A) NO CHANGE
There are multiple students, and the projects belong to them — so we need a plural possessive. Plural nouns that already end in -s take only an apostrophe: "students'." The original is correct.
The other options either introduce a grammatical error or change the intended meaning. The ACT consistently rewards the most concise, grammatically correct option.
Read the sentence with each option substituted in. The version that preserves meaning while obeying the underlying rule is the correct answer; on the ACT, that is almost always the shortest option that still works.
The underlying rule
A plural noun ending in -s takes only an apostrophe (no second s) to show possession. "Students'" means "belonging to multiple students."
Why each wrong answer is wrong
- B) student's: This option either drops the possessive entirely, makes the possessor singular, or doubles the s incorrectly.
- C) students's: This option either drops the possessive entirely, makes the possessor singular, or doubles the s incorrectly.
- D) students: This option either drops the possessive entirely, makes the possessor singular, or doubles the s incorrectly.
Study tip
Singular possessive: add 's ("the dog's bowl"). Plural possessive of a noun ending in s: add only an apostrophe ("the dogs' bowls"). Plural possessive of an irregular plural: add 's ("the children's books").
More Hard Punctuation
- Comma Before a Coordinating ConjunctionThe hike was long and exhausting, but the view from the summit was worth every step
- Semicolons in a Complex ListThe conference featured speakers from Austin, Texas; Portland, Oregon, and Madison,
- Apostrophe with a Plural PossessiveThe students' projects were displayed in the auditorium for the science fair.
- Colon Before a ListThe recipe called for three simple ingredients, flour, butter, and salt.
- Commas Around a Nonessential PhraseMy oldest brother who lives in Toronto is flying down for the holidays.