Tagged Questions
-3
votes
0answers
61 views
's 's ?! Works or not? [closed]
If we are talking about hats for example.
Mine is blue.Tom's is white.
Can I use the contraction of is in the previous sentence.
So it'll be like this 'Tom's 's white' !!
Is it grammatically ...
2
votes
2answers
145 views
What’s the word for the habit of writing “play’d” or “revolv’d”?
I’m working on an 18th-century manuscript, and I’m trying to explain to others the use of ’d in past tense verbs.
Is there a word that encompasses the usage of ’d in early 18th-century manuscripts? ...
1
vote
2answers
168 views
Why is an apostrophe used in the genitive “-’s”?
The English possessive isn’t a contraction, but rather a relic of the grammatical case system, so why is an apostrophe used in (most) forms of the possessive?
9
votes
2answers
811 views
Apostrophes in contractions: shan't, sha'n't or sha'nt?
I came across the word sha'n't when reading Winnie the Pooh the other day and it cast me into a Thoughtful Mood concerning the Appropriate Spelling of this word.
This word is a contraction of "shall ...
2
votes
1answer
153 views
Why is there an apostrophe in “h'm”?
By that I refer to the sound people make when they're thinking. Most people write "hm" nowadays, so they may not know of this, but traditionally, people wrote it as "h'm". The apostrophe can't ...
2
votes
3answers
217 views
Contracted dates
I'm comfortable with the '80s as a contraction of the eighties, as in the years from 1980-89.
How do I correctly use this when it is in a position where it looks like it is either an adjective or ...
0
votes
4answers
292 views
Use of ' to indicate missing letters/text
You can write
this ol' man 'ere
when you mean
this old man here
But can the ' be used to indicate whole missing sentence parts?
For example:
'been a pleasure!
for
It's been a ...
6
votes
3answers
1k views
Is “what’s” a correct short form of “what does”?
E.g. “What’s he think?”
Usually ’s is short for “is” so I don’t know.
1
vote
1answer
184 views
Contracting “Should not have” [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Can a word be contracted twice (e.g. "I'ven't")?
What is the correct way to contract "should not have", if there is one? "Should have" becomes ...
3
votes
2answers
291 views
Is “Most of it's in English” normal English?
The phrase "Most of it's in English" is grammatically correct (it's short for "Most of it is in English"), but it doesn't feel right. Is there a reason it doesn't feel right?
Edit: The thing I'm ...
7
votes
1answer
419 views
With the phrase “good night” do you have to use an apostrophe before the word “night” if you are to omit the use of “good?”
Am I actually contracting the phrase by omitting "good" from it, hence the need for the use of an apostrophe?
2
votes
1answer
447 views
Is “as oft” a valid contraction of “as often”? If it is, then why doesn't it have an apostrophe at the end?
Is "as oft" a valid contraction of "as often"? If it is, then why doesn't it have an apostrophe at the end?
11
votes
4answers
1k views
