Apostrophe's

[DZBone 0]

Yes. Very wrong.

VCRs.

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If you hadn't read this, would it have made a sound?

[indyz 1]

The MLA guide (used at many, if not most, American schools) says to not use an apostrophe when pluralizing abbreviations. A Writer's Reference, on the other hand, says to use an apostrophe. There is also the APA guide, which I don't have access to at the moment. Of course, these guides are all intended for American English.

I personally use the MLA style because it is what I was taught in high school, and it just seems to make more sense.

[ernokaikkonen 0]

Ok.. So, like, thanks for nothing!

"You're damned if you do, and you're damned if you don't"

[freefallfreak 0]

Uhh, is anyone as confused as me, now??

FFF

"Upon seeing the shadow of a pigeon, one must resist the urge to look up."

[ernokaikkonen 0]

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Uhh, is anyone as confused as me, now??

Umm, I don't know, I guess I am then? But if it was my last post that confused you, here it is explained:

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The MLA guide (used at many, if not most, American schools) says to not use an apostrophe when pluralizing abbreviations.

That's to say: You're damned if you do(use an apostrophe)...

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A Writer's Reference, on the other hand, says to use an apostrophe.

... and you're damned if you don't.

[freefallfreak 0]

That's what I thought you said...(anybody got a clue, tee-hee??)

FFF

"Upon seeing the shadow of a pigeon, one must resist the urge to look up."

[DZBone 0]

Fortunately, language is defined by usage, so whatever "looks right" to you and enough readers is "correct". It is a myth that there is a right and wrong way to speak or write.

A language is a dialect with an army.

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If you hadn't read this, would it have made a sound?

[KawiZX900 0]

bring me a bucket. "Sir?" a bucket dammit, I think I'm gonna be sick (sprays vommit all over waiter) -Monty Pytho'ns Meaning of life

Accelerate hard to get them looking, then slam on the fronts and rollright beside the car, hanging the back wheel at eye level for a few seconds. Guaranteed reaction- Dave Sonsky

[Gawain 0]

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For me, I'd be happy if people could just use "your" and "you're" correctly.

In my experience, this place isn't as bad as it could be...but I try to do the same with my grammar:

They're going to park their car over there.

You're going to jump with your new rig today?

It's going to take a while for it to get its sh*t together.

Right when he threw the ball through the window, he knew he'd have to write "I'm sorry" on the blackboard one-thousand times.

And on a softer note, here are some other tips for writing:...
How to write good:
1. Avoid alliteration. Always.
2. Prepositions are not words to end sentences with.
3. Avoid cliches like the plague. (They're old hat.)
4. Employ the vernacular.
5. Eschew ampersands & abbreviations, etc.
6. Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are unnecessary.
7. It is wrong to ever split an infinitive.
8. Contractions aren't necessary.
9. Foreign words and phrases are not apropos.
10. One should never generalize.
11. Eliminate quotations. As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said: "I hate quotations. Tell me what you know."
12. Comparisons are as bad as cliches.
13. Don't be redundant; don't more use words than necessary; it's highly superfluous.
14. Be more or less specific.
15. Understatement is always best.
16. Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement.
17. One-word sentences? Eliminate.
18. Analogies in writing are like feathers on a snake.
19. The passive voice is to be avoided.
20. Go around the barn at high noon to avoid colloquialisms.
21. Who needs rhetorical questions?

So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh
Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright
'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life
Make light!

[narcimund 0]

Prepositions are not words to end sentences with, asshole!

First Class Citizen Twice Over

[Gawain 0]

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Prepositions are not words to end sentences with, asshole! emphasis added my me...

See...now that's a noun!

So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh
Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright
'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life
Make light!

[SpeedRacer 1]

OK serious question here. What do you do about plural possessives? such as:

"I cut off all of the cats tails"

Is it correct to put the apostrophe afterwards, as in:

"I cut off all of the cats' tails"

Speed Racer
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[Jessica 0]

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Is it correct to put the apostrophe afterwards, as in:

"I cut off all of the cats' tails"

Yes...

If you said "...all of the cat's tails" then that would indicate you removed many tails from one cat. Which is a humorous image!

Skydiving is for cool people only

[freeflir29 0]

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I cut off all of the cats' tails

I'm not an English professor but I believe that's right.

[freeflir29 0]

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Yes...

Woohoo....Jessica beat me to it but I was still right!!!!

[SpeedRacer 1]

So these two sentences mean different things then:

"I squeezed both of the stripper's boobies."

and

"I squeezed both of the strippers' boobies."

Because in the second sentence you've got two strippers.
Is that right?

Speed Racer
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[Gawain 0]

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So these two sentences mean different things then:

"I squeezed both of the stripper's boobies."

and

"I squeezed both of the strippers' boobies."

Because in the second sentence you've got two strippers.
Is that right?

I'm not a professor, but I would say you are correct, overall. A nice objective for perfecting the complex English language!

So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh
Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright
'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life
Make light!

[seedy 0]

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I cut off all of the cats' tails

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I'm not an English professor but I believe that's right.

And I think this is what cats are for.

I intend to live forever -- so far, so good.

[freeflir29 0]

Well...you have two strippers in both sentences. In the first you are defining each stripper's boobies as being posessed individually. In the second you are describing them as collectively posessed by the two strippers. I think the first sentence is incorrect. It would have to be written "I squeezed each of the stripper's boobies." for it to show the correct posessive relationship.

[SpeedRacer 1]

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In Reply To
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So these two sentences mean different things then:

"I squeezed both of the stripper's boobies."

and

"I squeezed both of the strippers' boobies."

Because in the second sentence you've got two strippers.
Is that right?

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I'm not a professor, but I would say you are correct, overall. A nice objective for perfecting the complex English language!

SEE?? Who says the Talk Back forum can't improve our minds?

I would like to point out here that I was squeezing those boobies strictly for educational purposes.

Speed Racer
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[SpeedRacer 1]

hmm, I'm not sure you're correct about this one. I think "I squeezed both of the stripper's boobies." would mean one stripper, and that I squeezed both her boobies, as opposed to just copping a quick feel on one of them.

where's Jessica? Let's hear her opinion. I promise I will keep my hands to myself.

Speed Racer
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[freeflir29 0]

The "both" sets up the possesive as well....both.......the "stripper's" sets up the posessive as individual. They contradict each other.

[Jessica 0]

I think the most correct phrasing is, "I had a good time with Cindi and Candi."

Skydiving is for cool people only

[narcimund 0]

SpeedRacer is correct.

1) "both of the stripper's boobies" indicates one stripper and her two boobies.

2) "both of the strippers' boobies" indicates two strippers and an unspecified (but plural) number of boobies.

#3 is a bit of a mind bender:

3) "each of the stripper's boobies" indicates one stripper and an unspecified number of boobies.

In usage, "each" implies but does not denote a number greater than two. So #3 suggests the image to the mind, though does not strictly claim that the one stripper was endowed with more boobies than we would expect.

First Class Citizen Twice Over

[freeflir29 0]

Oh...hold on...I just got it....I guess #3 is a bit ambiguous. I guess that would make more sense as "each of the strippers' boobies." Who says learning can't be fun!!!