Can we use apostrophe s with countries?
Proper nouns (names of people, cities, countries) that end in s can form the possessive either by adding the apostrophe + s or simply adding the apostrophe.
Plural possessive of countries is countries' …. the apostrophe after the s. Those countries' borders should be better defended.
The plural is countries.
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The possessive form is used with nouns referring to people, groups of people, countries, and animals. It shows a relationship of belonging between one thing and another. To form the possessive, add apostrophe + s to the noun.
Countries sentence example. The colors represented the four countries of Oz, and the green star the Emerald City. Tiny countries willing to engage in free trade with their neighbors can prosper.
With some exceptions (for example: “The Netherland”, “The United States of America”, which are both in the plural form, but are actually singular), when referring to a country, it is considered a singular.
Typically, the article the is not used before the names of countries and territories: Our flight to the China was canceled. Our flight to China was canceled.
The possessive
Quick Use: Use an apostrophe + s for singular nouns (sea, sky), common nouns ending with s (tigress, mistress), and irregular plural nouns (women, children). Use only the apostrophe for proper nouns ending with s (Tess, Jesus, Texas) and regular plural nouns (cars, protestors).
The s is always pronounced in English, except in the phrase gay Paris. And if you are talking about Paris, Texas, then the s is always pronounced. @JanusBahsJacquet Thanks.
The plural of the word country is countries. e.g. There is only one country with a triangular flag. There are many countries in the world. When we use 's, it shows belonging.
Is countries a verb or plural noun?
noun, plural coun·tries. a state or nation: What European countries have you visited?
Unless a place name is at the end of a sentence and followed by sentence-ending punctuation, whenever you list a city and a state or a city and a country, place commas around the state or the country. The rule applies even when the country or state name is abbreviated.
We say the United States, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, the West Indies, the Philippines, and the Netherlands because they are compound nouns with adjectives but not India, France, China, South Korea, Japan, Germany, or Indonesia.
Part B: Possessive.
Like other words that are singular in meaning but formed from a plural, “United States” forms the possessive by adding an apostrophe alone {United States' interests}.
Both the Associated Press and the New York Times style books, for example, recommend using “it” or “its” to refer to ships and countries.
The preposition en always comes before the name of a country if it is feminine and before masculine countries if they start with a vowel.
The official designations of countries, national domains, and their principal administrative divisions are capitalized only if used as part of proper names, as proper names, or as proper adjectives. (See Chapter 17, Principal Foreign Countries table.)
Usage notes
During the first few decades after independence authors commonly treated United States as a plural noun, but in contemporary English it is always singular.
Some proper nouns referring to a country include: United State of America, Canada, Mexico, China, Indonesia, Tunisia, South Africa, Chile, and Argentina. While the word ''country,'' as is, functions as a common noun, the names of specific countries are known as proper nouns.
Countries like the United States of America and the United Kingdom also carry the definite article because they are compound nouns with adjectives. Professor Liberman says the habit of putting "the" in front of place names is heard throughout the English-speaking world and is common to Germanic and Romance languages.
What countries can you put the in front of?
Include the before countries (1) with plural names (the Philippines, the Maldives and the Netherlands); (2) with names containing a noun stating the kind of state (the Republic, the Democratic, the State(s), the Union, the Confederation, the Kingdom, the Commonwealth, the Principality).
If 'UK' is being used as a noun in a sentence it will always be “the UK” but if it is being used as an adjective it will be just “UK”. Example: We are going to the UK & I am participating in UK festival night.
James's car or James' car? Actually, both ways are correct. If a proper name ends with an s, you can add just the apostrophe or an apostrophe and an s. See the examples below for an illustration of this type of possessive noun.
Incorrect: We enjoyed the New Orleans' cuisine. Correct: We enjoyed the New Orleans cuisine.
Use an apostrophe + s to show ownership of most singular nouns. When a singular noun of more than one syllable ends with an s or z sound, you can form the possessive by adding just an apostrophe. But if the word is one syllable, you should use both the apostrophe and s. Dallas' (or Dallas's) skyline is impressive.
That's because the apostrophe before the “s” indicates ownership or possession when that's not the sign's intent. All you need is an “s” at the end of the name (Smiths, Johnsons). If you have trouble remembering whether the apostrophe is necessary, think of your message.
The “Chicago Manual of Style” says that you form the possessive of proper names ending in S the same way you handle plain-old nouns: Add apostrophe and S. The boss's house. Ross's house.
This is Travis's house. (correct and sounds better) This is Travis' house. (correct but awkward-sounding)
You should capitalize the names of countries, nationalities, and languages because they are proper nouns—English nouns that are always capitalized.
- ctry.
- co.
- Co.
What kind of noun is countries?
Yes, Country is a common noun. It can be a proper noun only when you name the country like India, China, etc.
In American English, we usually regard a country or state as a singular entity, and a singular verb form follows it.
1[countable] an area of land that has or used to have its own government and laws European countries leading industrial countries She didn't know what life in a foreign country would be like.
You could use a comma to separate the cities from the countries, and a semicolon to separate the locations. See the example of the semicolon being used as a super-comma given at this The Oatmeal comic: I have lived in Sydney, Australia; Tokyo, Japan; and Paris, France. Note that the list ends with "Paris, France".
Rule – Use a comma to separate the city from the state, and always put one after the state, also. Example: I lived in Denver, Colorado, for 20 years. NOTE: The U.S. Postal Service's two-letter capitalized abbreviations (e.g., CO for Colorado, IL for Illinois) are not recommended in formal writing.
When referring to multiple units (counties or departments), don't capitalize the plural. Clay County and Riley County, used separately, but Clay and Riley counties, as a plural.
Similarly India is the name of the country and therefore it is a personal pronoun. Hence, we can't use the article 'the' with India.
'An' is used before words which begin with a vowel sound. Note that we are talking about sounds and not spelling. For example the word "European" begins with the vowel letter 'e' but it is pronounced with the consonant sound / j /. Therefore we say and write, "He's British but he thinks of himself as a European."
“North America” and “South America” are the proper nouns, names for two continents. So we won't use “the” before them. In North America, 13 colonies united to form a nation. So they called themselves “the United States of America”.
Thus when used as a possessive, the name “Times” is followed by an apostrophe plus another “s.”
When did the United States stop being plural?
Already, as a result of Secretary Foster's careful historical research on the subject, the House of Representative's Committee on Revision of the Laws had ruled in 1902 that "the United States" should be treated as singular, not plural.
The possessive of United States is formed in both American and British English by the addition of a single apostrophe only: ie, United States'. If there's any potential for ambiguity, re-phrase the sentence to read, ''... of the United States''. (Sources: Chicago Manual of Style; AP Stylebook; Oxford Manual of Style.)
Both the Associated Press and the New York Times style books, for example, recommend using “it” or “its” to refer to ships and countries.
Apostrophes are used to form the possessive form of a singular noun or a plural noun not ending in s by adding ' and an s at the end. If a plural noun ends in s, only ' should be added. Correct: High school students' scores have been gradually improving over the last several years.
The preposition en always comes before the name of a country if it is feminine and before masculine countries if they start with a vowel.
The singular form is “country,” and the singular possessive is “country's.” For more than one nation, you will use the plural form “countries” or the plural possessive form “countries',” indicating ownership by more than one country.
Q. Should she or it be used as a pronoun for a country? A. Never use she to refer to a country.
Historically, "her" was commonly used as a pronoun for not only women, but also for both countries and ships (e.g. sailing vessels). However, that usage has more or less fallen out of favor, and instead "its" has become the preferred pronoun.
The apostrophe has three uses: 1) to form possessive nouns; 2) to show the omission of letters; and 3) to indicate plurals of letters, numbers, and symbols. Do not use apostrophes to form possessive pronouns (i.e. his/her computer) or noun plurals that are not possessives.
- I am – I'm: “I'm planning to write a book someday.”
- You are – You're: “You're going to have a lot of fun with your new puppy.”
- She is – She's: “She's always on time.”
- It is – It's: “I can't believe it's snowing again.”
- Do not – Don't: “I don't like anchovies.”
What is the rule for possessives ending in s?
Most experts and guides say you should add an apostrophe and an S to both proper and common nouns to make them possessive even when they end in S. So, using the examples above, it would be: Chris's car.
The United States, or the United States of America in full, takes a singular verb because the term designates a single country rather than a collection of states. The expression these United States appears occasionally in American publications, but this plural form is not recommended in formal writing.
) also U.S.A. The USA is an abbreviation for the United States of America.