Let's all go to the Smithses' House

JohnLine

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So one of my MC's last names ends in 's', similar to if someone had the last name of "Smiths."

For the sake of example let's say her name is "Miths." Is there any case for her possessive form to be Miths' rather than Miths's.

It feels better to me to say, "they all went to Miths' house," than "they all went to Miths's house," and I think that's the way the other characters would refer to it without thinking.

I've seen an example at https://www.thepunctuationguide.com/apostrophe.html
says it is correct to say:


  • Beverly Hills’ current mayor
  • the United States’ lingering debt problem
  • Cisco Systems’ CEO
  • the Beatles’ first album

But only because it is a Singular noun in a plural form.

Any thoughts? Do you think anyone would be upset if I used Miths' rather than Miths's?
 
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Layla Nahar

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Wait - a word that ends in 'S' just gets an apostrophe, right? regardless of whether it's singular or plural (And even if you pronounce it 'Jesuses house' you'd spell it 'Jesus' house', rather than Jesus's house. I think that's how it works...)
 

lilyWhite

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Including the "s" after the apostrophe with singular possessive is entirely stylistic; both using it and omitting it are acceptable.
 

Unimportant

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I thought one was American and the other British? Dunno.
 

Maryn

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The current approach is for all names or other forms of address that end with S (including a double S) or Z to be made possessive with apostrophe-S, like any other word. The exceptions are Jesus (the son of God, not your Hispanic friend) and gods and goddesses, both Greek and Roman (but not gods of other mythologies).

Singular:
I'm Jess's friend. He's my boss's son. We play Berlioz's symphonies and read Robert Burns's poems to each other.

But plurals haven't changed. They're still made possessive with an apostrophe and no additional S.

Plural:
The bosses' signatures were examined. The babies' cries filled the waiting room as the clowns' oversized shoes tapped impatiently. The Smiths' house was blessedly silent.

Maryn, pretty sure babies cry at clown shoes
 

JohnLine

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... read Robert Burns's poems to each other.
It's very similar to this, where a lot of people would probably make the mistake and say "read Robert Burns' poems to each other." So I'll probably use the incorrect form. Her name does get mutilated a lot; it's a bit of running joke, so there's no doubt in my mind people would pronounce it without the extra 's'. But the trick is whether to make the third person narrator also make this mistake. In my case, I'm using 3rd person limited, so I'll make the narrator's pronunciation match the current POV character.
 

Duncan J Macdonald

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In accordance with the US Government Printing Office Style Manual, to which I must adhere, Chapter 8.3, "The possessive case of a singular or plural noun ending in s or with an s sound is formed by adding an apostrophe only. Some irregular plurals require both an apostrophe and an s."
 

Maryn

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Ain't it a bitch when the various authorities disagree?

I doubt anyone would reject a manuscript for going old school and following that rule, but they might want edits to make it adhere to house style.

Maryn, who only switched over in the last five or ten years
 

AW Admin

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This is a style sheet issue. Pick one style and be consistent. If the publisher has a house style/preference, the editor will suggest changes, but being consistent will make everyone's life easier.