apostrophe
EnglishEdit
PronunciationEdit
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /əˈpɒs.tɹə.fi/
- (US) IPA(key): /əˈpɑːs.tɹə.fi/
Audio (US) (file) Audio (AU) (file)
Etymology 1Edit
From French apostrophe, or Latin apostrophus, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστροφος (apóstrophos, “accent of elision”), a noun use of an adjective from ἀποστρέφω (apostréphō, “I turn away”), from ἀπό (apó, “away from”) + στρέφω (stréphō, “to turn”).
Alternative formsEdit
NounEdit
apostrophe (plural apostrophes)
- (orthography) The text character ’, which serves as a punctuation mark in various languages and as a diacritical mark in certain rare contexts.
- 2021, Claire Cock-Starkey, Hyphens & Hashtags, Bodleian Library, page 30:
- Since its inception the apostrophe has been a controversial piece of punctuation.
Usage notesEdit
In English, the apostrophe is used to mark the possessive (e.g., “my friend’s wife”), and to show the omission of letters (e.g., “my friend’s angry”) or of numbers (e.g., "during the 1960s and ’70s").
Derived termsEdit
TranslationsEdit
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See alsoEdit
apostrophe on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
- dashes ( ‒ ) ( – ) ( — ) ( ― )
- ellipsis ( … )
- exclamation mark ( ! )
- fraction slash ( ⁄ )
- guillemets ( « » ) ( ‹ › )
- hyphen ( - ) ( ‐ )
- interpunct ( · )
- interrobang (rare) ( ‽ )
- parentheses ( ( ) )
- period (US) or full stop (Britain) ( . )
- question mark ( ? )
- quotation marks (formal) ( ‘ ’ ‚ ) ( “ ” „ )
- quotation marks (informal, computing) ( " ) ( ' )
Etymology 2Edit
From Latin apostrophe, from Ancient Greek ἀποστροφή (apostrophḗ), from ἀποστρέφω (apostréphō, “I turn away”), from ἀπό (apó) + στρέφω (stréphō, “I turn”).
NounEdit
apostrophe (countable and uncountable, plural apostrophes)
- (rhetoric) A sudden exclamatory piece of dialogue addressed to someone or something, especially absent.
- [1835, L[arret] Langley, A Manual of the Figures of Rhetoric, […], Doncaster: Printed by C. White, Baxter-Gate, OCLC 1062248511, page 28:
- Apostrophe a bold digression makes,
Mov'd by some sudden thought the theme awakes.]
Derived termsEdit
Related termsEdit
TranslationsEdit
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AnagramsEdit
FrenchEdit
PronunciationEdit
- IPA(key): /a.pɔs.tʁɔf/
- Homophones: apostrophent, apostrophes
Audio (file)
Etymology 1Edit
From Latin apostrophus, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστροφος (apóstrophos, “accent of elision”), a noun use of an adjective from ἀποστρέφω (apostréphō, “I turn away”).
NounEdit
apostrophe f (plural apostrophes)
Etymology 2Edit
From Latin apostrophe, from Ancient Greek ἀποστροφή (apostrophḗ), from ἀποστρέφω (apostréphō, “I turn away”), from ἀπό (apó) + στρέφω (stréphō, “I turn”).
NounEdit
apostrophe f (plural apostrophes)
Related termsEdit
Etymology 3Edit
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
VerbEdit
apostrophe
- first/third-person singular present indicative of apostropher
- first/third-person singular present subjunctive of apostropher
- second-person singular imperative of apostropher
Further readingEdit
- “apostrophe” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).