Rule #2: You never need an apostrophe when signing or addressing cards. (Apostrophes imply possession, which isn't what you're trying to do. You're simply naming them in the plural.) These rules mean you should write out any last name in full, whether Williams or Garcia, and simply tack something onto the end.
Only use an apostrophe when you want to make a name possessive. ("From The Smith's" is always wrong, but "The party is at the Smiths' house" is correct.)
Avoid making this common faux pas when you're making your Christmas card! When making your last name plural, you don't need to add an apostrophe! The apostrophe makes the name possessive. The last letter of your last name will determine if you add an “-s” or an “-es”.
Unlike singular possessives, which take an apostrophe followed by an S, plural possessives take an apostrophe alone. So if you're going to the home of the Smiths, you're going to the Smiths' house. If you're going to visit the Williamses, that would be at the Williamses' house. Mr.
To show possession using an apostrophe, add 's for individuals (“Smith's car”) and just the apostrophe after the s for plurals (“the Smiths' car,” “the Martinezes' dog”). By convention, names from classical mythology and the Bible ending in s show possession with the apostrophe only (“Jesus' teachings”).
You usually make family names plural by adding an “s” to the end. However, if the name ends in "s," “x,” "z," “ch,” or “sh,” you usually add an “es” instead (but there are exceptions). The plural of “mother-in-law” is “mothers-in-law.” The plural of “Mister” is ““Messieurs,” which is abbreviated “Messrs.”
You're going to want to add the letters –es to your last name to make it plural. In other words, Jane Gomez and Lydia Gomez becomes the Gomezes. Jim Felix and his wife and kids becomes the Felixes.
The plural of Jones is Joneses, ‐es being added as an indicator of the plurality of a word of which the singular form ends in s, as in dresses or messes. The apposition of the much misused apostrophe to the word Jones does not pluralize it.
The plural of Smith is Smiths. NOT Smith's. And if for some reason the Smiths wanted to use the possessive, they would have to use the plural possessive. To say the Smith's live here makes no sense.
The easiest way to address an envelope to an entire family is simply write "The (Last Name of the Family) Family" as the first line of your address.
The Associated Press Stylebook recommends just an apostrophe: It's Tennessee Williams' best play. But most other authorities endorse 's: Williams's. Williams's means “belonging to Williams.” It is not the plural form of Williams. People's names become plural the way most other words do.
For your last name, it ends in 's,' so just add the 'es': “Merry Christmas from the Mayses” or “Merry Christmas from the Humphreyses.” (Again, if you don't like how that looks or sounds, just say, “Merry Christmas from the Humphreys Family.”
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.
Second, a name ending in s takes only an apostrophe if the possessive form is not pronounced with an extra s. Hence: Socrates' philosophy. Saint Saens' music.
If a name is singular but ends in an “s,” you always add an apostrophe after the name to show possession, but you can also add another “s” after the apostrophe if you prefer (e.g., Jess' office OR Jess's office). If the name is plural, simply add an apostrophe at the end to show possession (e.g., the Jones' new baby).
The possessive case of plural nouns that end in s is formed by adding an apostrophe: This is the boys' bedroom. My parents' house is a lovely old one. The scissors' handles just snapped off.
“The Smiths.” The apostrophe (typically) indicates possession. Adding an s without an apostrophe indicates a plural. If you want to say something belongs to the Smith family as a group, you write “the Smiths'.” “I spent the day at the Smiths' swimming pool.”
If you're going with The Associated Press Stylebook, James' is the correct way of writing James in the possessive form. But, for all other style guides, James's is the way to go.
First, form your plural: You're visiting the Rosses. Then make it possessive: You're going to the Rosses' house. Remember, because this is plural, there's no dispute on how to make it possessive. Use just an apostrophe.
“I visited Thomas's house” and “I visited Thomas' house” are both valid style choices. But the former is more popular in professional publishing. So a safe solution is to treat singular nouns ending in S the same way you treat singulars nouns not ending in S: Form the possessive with an apostrophe and an S.
For showing family possession with surnames that are plural and possessive, make the name plural first by adding an “s” and then add an apostrophe to make them possessive. The Smiths' car was parked illegally. (The car belonged to Mr. and Mrs.
The Whole Family's Last Name
To show possession of a whole family: Add -es or -s to write the family's last name in plural form. Add an apostrophe at the end to show possession.
Pluralizing Family Names
The rules for pluralization are simple: Use an -s if your name ends with a vowel or a voiced consonant.
Adams, Adamses, Adams's | Vita Brevis.
An apostrophe is a small punctuation mark ( ' ) placed after a noun to show that the noun owns something. The apostrophe will always be placed either before or after an s at the end of the noun owner. Always the noun owner will be followed (usually immediately) by the thing it owns.