Three Liddle Differences Between an Apostrophe and a Hyphen: A Guide

Grammar and punctuation are challenging for many of us. Even among those who have attained a lot of success in certain other areas of life may struggle with proper English from time to time. For these folks, I've created a handy guide to telling apart two prominently confused pieces of punctuation: the apostrophe ( ' ) and the hyphen ( - ).

First, let's look at the apostrophe. Sometimes known as "half a quotation mark," the apostrophe is a little upside-down comma that hangs out above a word and denotes either a contraction (two words pushed together with some letters removed) or a possessive (meaning, an item that belongs to someone.)


Contractions include "don't" (do not), "can't", (can not), "won't" (will not, that's an interesting one in regards to which letters are removed.)

In a sentence: I don't understand why some high-ranking officials can't or won't learn the language they are so vocal about believing everyone should speak.

Another use of the apostrophe would be to indicate a missing letter, like in the abbreviation "l'il" for "little." You'll notice letters are missing in multiple places in this word, but the apostrophe only occurs once, in the middle of the word, to indicate the word has been shortened. "Lil" is also an acceptable shortening of the word. In colloquial speech, you might find apostrophes at the ends of      "-ing" words, like "votin' " "regrettin' " and "embarassin' ". All of these words can also be stylized without the apostrophe.

Note that no words without a missing letter at the end would be correctly punctuated by an ending apostrophe, except the in case of a plural possessive.

In the case of the possessive, the apostrophe goes between the name of the individual or group, and the "s".

Example: America's president doesn't know what an apostrophe is.

In the case of a plural possessive, where the plural of the word ends with "s", the apostrophe would go at the end of the plural word.

Example:

The United States' population cared more about a tan suit than literal treason.

Next, onto the hyphen. The hyphen ( - ) is a line, or dash, that shows two or more words are linked in the sentence, or come together to be part of one big meaning. It can also indicate that a word has been separated into two lines for formatting purposes.

For example, "never-ending," "all-consuming," "soul-wrenching." It can be used unconventionally to link words together when the writer deems it appropriate for the sentence, as in, "She prayed that the next so-called-Democratic-but-really-Oligarchic election would have a better outcome."

It's important to know these little grammar and punctuation tips, to avoid misunderstandings and embarrassing public flubs. 

Thanks for reading my quick and handy guide! What punctuation marks trip you up? Leave me a comment and let me know.