Apostrophes and Speech Marks

Apostrophes and speech marks are two punctuation marks that students often find tricky — but getting them right is very important in the CSSE 11+ English paper. Since SPaG is tested within the English paper itself (not as a separate paper), using these marks correctly in your comprehension answers and creative writing will help you pick up valuable marks.

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Apostrophes: Two Jobs

An apostrophe (') has exactly two jobs in English:

1. Contraction — to show that letters have been missed out
2. Possession — to show that something belongs to someone or something

It does not have any other job. It is never used to make a word plural.

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Apostrophes for Contraction

When two words are shortened into one, an apostrophe marks where the missing letters were.

Full form	Contraction
do not	don't
I will	I'll
they are	they're
it is / it has	it's
could not	couldn't
we have	we've
she would	she'd

Tip: To check whether an apostrophe is being used for contraction, try expanding the word back into two words. If it makes sense, the apostrophe is correct.

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Apostrophes for Possession

When something belongs to a person or thing, you add an apostrophe (and usually an "s") to show ownership.

Singular possession

If the owner is singular (one person or thing), add 's:

• the girl's book (the book belonging to one girl)
• the dog's bone (the bone belonging to one dog)
• James's coat (the coat belonging to James)

Plural possession

If the owner is plural and already ends in "s", add just an apostrophe after the "s":

• the girls' books (the books belonging to more than one girl)
• the dogs' bones (the bones belonging to more than one dog)

If the plural does not end in "s", add 's:

• the children's toys
• the men's coats
• the people's choice

Quick Reference Table

Owner	How to show possession	Example
One girl	girl's	the girl's hat
Two girls	girls'	the girls' hats
One child	child's	the child's toy
Two children	children's	the children's toys
One mouse	mouse's	the mouse's cheese
Many mice	mice's	the mice's cheese

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The It's vs Its Trap

This is one of the most common mistakes in English — and one the CSSE examiners will definitely notice.

• It's = it is OR it has (contraction)
• Its = belonging to it (possession)

Test: Try replacing the word with "it is" or "it has". If the sentence still makes sense, use it's. If not, use its.

Sentence	Correct?	Why?
It's a sunny day.	Yes	It is a sunny day.
The dog wagged it's tail.	No	"It is tail" makes no sense. Use its.
It's been raining all day.	Yes	It has been raining all day.
The tree lost its leaves.	Yes	The leaves belong to the tree.

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