How to use possessive apostrophes

A possessive apostrophe shows that something belongs to or is connected to something else.

Join Maggie the magpie to discover some examples of how to use an apostrophe to show possession.

A singular noun is a noun referring to just one person or thing, for example 'cat'.

When you want to show that something belongs to that person or thing, you add a possessive apostrophe and an 's'.

For example:

The cat's tail was fluffy.

The 's' shows that the tail belongs to the cat.

Top tip!

If a singular noun already ends in 's', you don't need to add another 's'. You can just add an apostrophe at the end.

For example:

Iris' cat was sleepy.

Plural nouns refer to more than one person or thing, for example 'brothers'.

To show possession when the noun is plural and already ends in 's', you just add an apostrophe to the end of the word. You don't need to add an extra 's'.

For example:

The brothers' feet were muddy.

The cats' fur is very fluffy.