Grammar Police People
 

Though this may actually be spelling, I dunno, it still confounds me.

The munchkin has a spelling list of plural possessive's this week.

One of the words on the list is class's.

That boggles my mind.

Why is it not class'?

I have toyed with the notion of emailing the teacher to find out. Then I decided I'd rather expose my ignorance to you all than to her.

And I can't find the answer on the Net. So edjumacate me, please.

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Why is it not "classes"? ;)

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Context is everything, apart from which particular Style Guide is in fashion.

Class as you've written it there is singular, no? As in, one class containing several people.

The Times publishes its, but it's a UK one which may not be in fashion in the US:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/section/0,,2941,00.html

It recommends writing "as voiced".

EG:

The class's project. (One class, one project).
The class's projects. (One class, several projects).
The classes' project. (Several classes, one project).
The classes' projects. (Several classes, several projects).

Re: Grammar Police People
 

From Strunk and White's The Elements of Style (regarded by many to be the "little Bible of writing," as it is clear, concise and based on what is coherent rather than what has been traditionally correct.)

"Form the possessive singular of nouns by adding 's"

They felt it enough of a pain in the ass to put it on page 1, too.

Put simply, points to Jeremy, he's right. :okthumb:

Re: Grammar Police People
 

And here I thought you were gonna take a poke at them..... :(

Re: Grammar Police People
 

i'll ave a gregory for an elephant and do it for sausage an mash as i dont want any barneys

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Re: Grammar Police People
 

:blink:

I love that kind of talk, incomprehensible thought it may be.

OK, I know what "sausage and mash" is. I even know what a "banger" is.

I just hope to hell he's not nattering about that big purple dinosaur.

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Ok, are we in agreement that class's is a singular possessive and not a plural possessive and teach is wrong? Or no?

Re: Grammar Police People
 

No, that's what teach said it was.

"Class's" is the singular possessive.

Now I'm trying to decide just how to spell "possessive." It looks wrong like that, but probably isn't.

I hate it when you look at a word and it just looks wrong.

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Exactly if it is a list of plural possessives then teach is wrong and I would email her and simply ask her to explain her theory.

Re: Grammar Police People
 

I don't see any reason why American's would need to debate the word , few have it.

;-))))

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Yeah & tell her a bunch of porners reckon she's wrong - that'll go down well :-)))

Re: Grammar Police People
 

:fish0111:

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Thought as much. :)

Re: Grammar Police People
 

My apologies. For some reason I totally missed the "plural" in your original post. My bad.

However, you may be up against it. I've posted before about my daughter, the spelling bee and the word "doughnut." The startled teacher said "that's right, of course, but I was looking for 'donut.'" :blink:

Re: Grammar Police People
 

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! **bangs head on desk**

Morgan - if you haven't already got it, I'd ask for this in your stocking:

Eats, Shoots and Leaves

Re: Grammar Police People
 

panda!

or

Me !

;-))

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Hehehe - obviously we know the same jokes :-))

A man goes to the doctor and say "Doctor, doctor, I've managed to get a cricket ball up my arse"

And the Doctor says...

Re: Grammar Police People
 

~lmao~

I think I will not disclose that.

But I may email her, because I'm even more confused now, I think.

If the entire list is plural possessive's (possessives?)

And classes is the plural of class

Should it not be classes' ?

Re: Grammar Police People
 

"Howzat!"

lol

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Thanks for reminding me about this book. I saw the author on the "Today Show" and she's a stitch. :)

Now, all I have to do is decide whether or not to leave it on my "Wish List" or just buy myself a present. :)

(Should have been semi-colons in that last, I suspect.)

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Nick: I think between us we've just lost a small continent, who may not get that gag :-)

Morgan: Buy it. It's an entertaining read and, on occasion, a handy reference.

(IMO, a colon & semi-colon combo wouldn't have changed the sense of what you were saying, unless you wanted a bit more emphasis).

Selena: possessives in this case, as it's plural. Some people would grind their teeth at using an adjective as a noun, but hey-ho.

It should definitely be classes' from where we all seem to sit, if there's more than one class.

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Now we know what it takes to get Jeremy posting! :1thud:

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Could you please say it on simple words? :D

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Selena be's askin' fer learnin' 'bout the spellin' stuff. :)

Re: Grammar Police People
 

They wants to know where that "funny comma that floats in the air" goes to. :blink:

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Okay, gang, I got the lowdown from the teacher.

Even though they are studying plural possessives in English this week and even though the entire rest of the spelling list is plural possessives, this single word is a singular possessive. :unsure:

So Jeremey's call, and whoever else made the call of class's is correct.

Re: Grammar Police People
 

Sigh.

Selena be axing ...

Re: Grammar Police People
 

:boohoo:

I'm nearly inconsolable with shame.

Thank you, PD. You are most correct. I shall take me outside and thrash me mightily.

PD is now in charge.... :)

Re: Grammar Police People
 

I learned a lot in grammar's neighborhood.

Or, as is often the case for urban areas, I learned a lot as the area of grammar's house went from "May I ask what neighborhood you live in?" to "I be axing you what hood you be stayin' in, sucka."

I will still have to defer to you on the nuances of proper English as talked or writed correctly in the only place it is spoken correctly - the United States. After all, I got no class, I got no principles, and grammar be dead - and I have no desire to be regarded as proper, anyway.