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I am calligraphing holiday ornaments. I have been given a list of names. Which is correct when a name ends in an es, "The Jones's, or The Joneses, or The Jones'?"

Also, when it does not end in an es, is it "The Smith's, The Smithes, or The Smiths', or The Smiths ?"

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Mr. Jones has an ornmanent.
Mr. Jones' ornament looks nice. (possessive option #1)
Mr. Jones's ornament looks nice. (possessive option #2)
The Joneses, meaning Mr. and Mrs. Jones, have an ornament.
The Joneses' ornament looks nice. (possessive option #1)
The Joneses's ornament looks nice. (possessive option #2)
Mr. Smith has an ornament.
Mr. Smith's ornament looks nice.  (possessive)
The Smiths, meaning Mr. and Mrs. Smith, have an ornament.
The Smiths' ornament looks nice.  (possessive options #1)
The Smiths's ornament looks nice.  (possessive option #2)
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    I would regard these as incorrect: Mr. Jones' ornament looks nice. The Joneses's ornament looks nice. The Smiths's ornament looks nice.
    – tunny
    Commented Oct 23, 2014 at 19:24
  • @tunny this may depend on your regional preferences. I have heard many people say (phonetic) "Mr. Jones ornamant" where they don't add an "ez" to Jones when making it possessive in speach. The writing of Mr. Jones' indicates possessive but no spoken ez. I have also heard other people who will say (phonetic) "The Jonesesez ornament" or "The Smithsez ornament" especially in the American South and West. So if a significant number of people say it that way it should be ok to write it that way, since the written form is supposed to indicate how it is said, as I understand it.
    – Brillig
    Commented Oct 24, 2014 at 22:55

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