{"id":28,"date":"2017-06-19T22:54:19","date_gmt":"2017-06-19T22:54:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/olemiss-writing100\/chapter\/contractions-acronyms-and-numbers\/"},"modified":"2020-04-01T12:18:33","modified_gmt":"2020-04-01T12:18:33","slug":"contractions-acronyms-and-numbers","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/irsc-english\/chapter\/contractions-acronyms-and-numbers\/","title":{"raw":"Contractions, Acronyms, and Numbers","rendered":"Contractions, Acronyms, and Numbers"},"content":{"raw":"<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\r\n<h3>Learning Objectives<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Recognize the standard uses of apostrophes<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Demonstrate the standard uses of apostrophes<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\nA contraction is a shortened phrase. <em><strong>He<\/strong> <strong>will<\/strong><\/em> becomes <em><strong>he\u2019ll<\/strong><\/em>, <em><strong>are not<\/strong><\/em> becomes <strong>aren\u2019t<\/strong>, <em><strong>would have<\/strong><\/em> becomes <em><strong>would\u2019ve<\/strong><\/em>, and <em><strong>it is<\/strong><\/em> becomes<em><strong> it\u2019s<\/strong><\/em>. In all of these cases, the apostrophe stands in for the missing letters.\r\n\r\nYou may find yourself being steered away from using contractions in your papers. While you should follow your teacher\u2019s preference, keep in mind that leaving out contractions can often make your words sound too formal and stilted. (And you shouldn\u2019t eliminate contractions in your papers just to up your word count!)\r\n<div class=\"textbox key-takeaways\">\r\n<h3>Possessive pronouns\u00a0vs.\u00a0contractions<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>your vs.\u00a0you\u2019re<\/li>\r\n \t<li>its vs. it\u2019s<\/li>\r\n \t<li>their vs. they\u2019re<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nAll three of these pairs are the same kind of pair: a possessive pronoun and a contracted version of a pronoun + to be (you\u2019re = you are; it\u2019s = it is; they\u2019re = they are). These are easy to mix up (especially its\/it\u2019s) because\u2014as we\u2019ve learned\u2014an apostrophe <em><strong>+ s<\/strong><\/em> indicates possession. The best way to use these correctly is to remember that possessive pronouns never have an apostrophe: if there\u2019s an apostrophe with a pronoun, it\u2019s a contraction, not a possessive.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\nIn technical writing, acronyms and numbers are frequently pluralized with the addition of an apostrophe <em><strong>+ s<\/strong><\/em>, but this is falling out of favor, and there is typically no need to put an apostrophe in front of the <em><strong>s<\/strong><\/em>. For example, <em>SSTs<\/em> (sea surface temperatures) is more acceptable than <em>SST\u2019s<\/em> when your intention is simply to pluralize.\r\n\r\nIdeally, with an acronym or number, use the apostrophe before the <em><strong>s<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0only to show possession (i.e., \u201c1860\u2019s law\u201d; \u201cDEP\u2019s testing\u201d) or when confusion would otherwise result (\u201cmind your p\u2019s and q\u2019s\u201d).\r\n\r\nYou can also use an apostrophe to stand in for omitted numbers.\r\n<div class=\"textbox\">I was born in \u201975, and I\u2019m feeling old.<\/div>\r\nIt\u2019s important to note that the use of contractions and the use of apostrophes to stand in for omitted numbers are generally considered too informal for most academic writing.\r\n\r\nSome students wonder why they should bother learning these rules, then. The answer is that there are plenty of writing situations in which\u00a0contractions are appropriate. It\u2019s just that contractions are too informal for most of the formal papers you write for college and should be avoided in those situations.\r\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\r\n<h3>practice<\/h3>\r\n<iframe src=\"https:\/\/h5p.cwr.olemiss.edu\/h5p\/embed\/31\" width=\"688\" height=\"525\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\r\n\r\nWork through these practice questions to ensure you are clear on the distinction between using an apostrophe to show possession or using it as a contraction.\r\n\r\n[embed]https:\/\/lumenlearning.h5p.com\/content\/1290906739311587408\/embed[\/embed]\r\n\r\n<\/div>","rendered":"<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\n<h3>Learning Objectives<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Recognize the standard uses of apostrophes<\/li>\n<li>Demonstrate the standard uses of apostrophes<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>A contraction is a shortened phrase. <em><strong>He<\/strong> <strong>will<\/strong><\/em> becomes <em><strong>he\u2019ll<\/strong><\/em>, <em><strong>are not<\/strong><\/em> becomes <strong>aren\u2019t<\/strong>, <em><strong>would have<\/strong><\/em> becomes <em><strong>would\u2019ve<\/strong><\/em>, and <em><strong>it is<\/strong><\/em> becomes<em><strong> it\u2019s<\/strong><\/em>. In all of these cases, the apostrophe stands in for the missing letters.<\/p>\n<p>You may find yourself being steered away from using contractions in your papers. While you should follow your teacher\u2019s preference, keep in mind that leaving out contractions can often make your words sound too formal and stilted. (And you shouldn\u2019t eliminate contractions in your papers just to up your word count!)<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox key-takeaways\">\n<h3>Possessive pronouns\u00a0vs.\u00a0contractions<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>your vs.\u00a0you\u2019re<\/li>\n<li>its vs. it\u2019s<\/li>\n<li>their vs. they\u2019re<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>All three of these pairs are the same kind of pair: a possessive pronoun and a contracted version of a pronoun + to be (you\u2019re = you are; it\u2019s = it is; they\u2019re = they are). These are easy to mix up (especially its\/it\u2019s) because\u2014as we\u2019ve learned\u2014an apostrophe <em><strong>+ s<\/strong><\/em> indicates possession. The best way to use these correctly is to remember that possessive pronouns never have an apostrophe: if there\u2019s an apostrophe with a pronoun, it\u2019s a contraction, not a possessive.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>In technical writing, acronyms and numbers are frequently pluralized with the addition of an apostrophe <em><strong>+ s<\/strong><\/em>, but this is falling out of favor, and there is typically no need to put an apostrophe in front of the <em><strong>s<\/strong><\/em>. For example, <em>SSTs<\/em> (sea surface temperatures) is more acceptable than <em>SST\u2019s<\/em> when your intention is simply to pluralize.<\/p>\n<p>Ideally, with an acronym or number, use the apostrophe before the <em><strong>s<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0only to show possession (i.e., \u201c1860\u2019s law\u201d; \u201cDEP\u2019s testing\u201d) or when confusion would otherwise result (\u201cmind your p\u2019s and q\u2019s\u201d).<\/p>\n<p>You can also use an apostrophe to stand in for omitted numbers.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox\">I was born in \u201975, and I\u2019m feeling old.<\/div>\n<p>It\u2019s important to note that the use of contractions and the use of apostrophes to stand in for omitted numbers are generally considered too informal for most academic writing.<\/p>\n<p>Some students wonder why they should bother learning these rules, then. The answer is that there are plenty of writing situations in which\u00a0contractions are appropriate. It\u2019s just that contractions are too informal for most of the formal papers you write for college and should be avoided in those situations.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\n<h3>practice<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/h5p.cwr.olemiss.edu\/h5p\/embed\/31\" width=\"688\" height=\"525\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Work through these practice questions to ensure you are clear on the distinction between using an apostrophe to show possession or using it as a contraction.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/lumenlearning.h5p.com\/content\/1290906739311587408\/embed\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"750\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t <section class=\"citations-section\" role=\"contentinfo\">\n\t\t\t <h3>Candela Citations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t <div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <div id=\"citation-list-28\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <div class=\"licensing\"><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">CC licensed content, Shared previously<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Style For Students Online. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: Joe Schall. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>:  The Pennsylvania State University. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/The%20Pennsylvania%20State%20University\">http:\/\/The%20Pennsylvania%20State%20University<\/a>. <strong>Project<\/strong>:  Penn State&#039;s College of Earth and Mineral Sciences&#039; OER Initiative. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">CC licensed content, Specific attribution<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Excelsior OWL: Apostrophes. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: Excelsior College. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/owl.excelsior.edu\/grammar-essentials\/punctuation\/apostrophes\/\">http:\/\/owl.excelsior.edu\/grammar-essentials\/punctuation\/apostrophes\/<\/a>. <strong>Project<\/strong>: Grammar Essentials . <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/\">CC BY: Attribution<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">Public domain content<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>George Aldrich (errors added). . <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: NASAH. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/George%20Aldrich%20(errors%20added).%20\">http:\/\/George%20Aldrich%20(errors%20added).%20<\/a>. <strong>Project<\/strong>: Behind the Scenes: Meet the People. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/about\/pdm\">Public Domain: No Known Copyright<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t <\/section>","protected":false},"author":163,"menu_order":4,"template":"","meta":{"_candela_citation":"[{\"type\":\"cc\",\"description\":\"Style For Students Online\",\"author\":\"Joe Schall\",\"organization\":\" The Pennsylvania State University\",\"url\":\" The Pennsylvania State University\",\"project\":\" Penn State\\'s College of Earth and Mineral Sciences\\' OER Initiative\",\"license\":\"cc-by-nc-sa\",\"license_terms\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"cc-attribution\",\"description\":\"Excelsior OWL: Apostrophes\",\"author\":\"\",\"organization\":\"Excelsior College\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/owl.excelsior.edu\/grammar-essentials\/punctuation\/apostrophes\/\",\"project\":\"Grammar Essentials \",\"license\":\"cc-by\",\"license_terms\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"pd\",\"description\":\"George Aldrich (errors added). \",\"author\":\"\",\"organization\":\"NASAH\",\"url\":\"George Aldrich (errors added). \",\"project\":\"Behind the Scenes: Meet the People\",\"license\":\"pd\",\"license_terms\":\"\"}]","CANDELA_OUTCOMES_GUID":"56219e2e-0c47-4a37-b0ce-1d722231202b, 2ba74f8d-21e6-4675-adfe-7c648f5dd28b, a1484174-5fd2-4737-b696-deb06ad1b2e","pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-28","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry"],"part":23,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/irsc-english\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/28","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/irsc-english\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/irsc-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/irsc-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/163"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/irsc-english\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/28\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1507,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/irsc-english\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/28\/revisions\/1507"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/irsc-english\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/23"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/irsc-english\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/28\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/irsc-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/irsc-english\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=28"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/irsc-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=28"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/irsc-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=28"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}