Page 1048 - Wordsmith A Guide to College Writing

1. the names of my uncles =
2. the litter box of the cats =

3. the exhaustion of the workers =

4. the salaries of the athletes =

5. the taste of the cookies =

6. the demographic makeup of the classes =

7. the water levels of the lakes =
8. the disastrous vacation of the Robinsons =

9. the barking of the neighborhood dogs =

10. the voices of the speakers =

Proofreading for Apostrophe Errors

To find apostrophes incorrectly omitted from possessives, check each

noun ending in s to see if it is followed by something it possesses.

The corner delis roast chicken is the best in town.

Does roast chicken belong to delis? Yes. But does the apostrophe go

before or after the s? Look for clues to whether the original word
(before it was made possessive) was intended to be singular or plural.

The main clue lies in the word best. Only one deli would have the best

chicken. In addition, the deli is described as the corner deli, and there

is unlikely to be more than one deli on the corner.

The corner deli’s roast chicken is the best in town.