Name Date

Apostrophes – Exercise 1

This handout accompanies Exercise 1 of Grammar Bytes! Get the answers by doing the interactive version of the exercise at this address: http://chompchomp.com/exercises.htm

Directions: Choose the correct evaluation of each underlined word.

1. Annoying music escaped from Kinya’s ear buds.

A. Kinya’s contains a correct apostrophe. B. No apostrophe is needed.

2. Buy your own pens! You cannot borrow ours.

A. Ours does not need an apostrophe. B. Ours should have an apostrophe between the r and s: our’s. C. Ours should have an apostrophe after the s: ours’.

3. Ask Henry for help. His brain possess’s all kinds of strange trivia.

A. Possess’s contains a correct apostrophe. B. You must spell the word like this: possesses.

4. The alarm clocks buzz startled Shane awake.

A. Clocks does not need an apostrophe. B. Clocks should have an apostrophe between the k and s: clock’s.

5. While the bee buzzes among the blooms, a patient mantis waits to strike.

A. Buzzes does not need an apostrophe. B. You must spell the word with an apostrophe: buzz’s. C. You must spell the word with an apostrophe: buzzes’.

6. The Larsen’s decided not to shutter their windows even though they were taking vacation at the height of hurricane season.

A. Larsen’s contains a correct apostrophe. B. The apostrophe should come after the s: Larsens’. C. Larsens should not have an apostrophe.

7. Betty Ann could not resist petting the adorable poodle puppie’s.

A. Puppie’s contains a correct apostrophe. B. No apostrophe is needed. C. Puppies should have the apostrophe after the s: puppies’.

8. Our stomachs might burst! We shouldn’t have eaten so many fried cheese sticks.

A. Shouldn’t contains a correct apostrophe. B. The apostrophe must come between the d and n, where the space was omitted: should’nt.

9. Phillip banged his knees’ on the metal bar beneath the desk.

A. Knees’ contains a correct apostrophe. B. Knees should have the apostrophe before the s: knee’s. C. There’s no apostrophe in knees.

10. Kimberly’s agile fingers typed the password too quickly for Pedro to catch.

A. Kimberly’s contains a correct apostrophe. B. The apostrophe should come after the s: Kimberlys’.

11. We wouldn’t try one of your oatmeal raisin cookies for cash. We’ave seen your dirty kitchen!

A. We’ave is a correct contraction. B. You must spell the word like this: we’ve.

12. We spent more time on our science fair project than Karen and Denny did, but everyone is ignoring our work to view their’s instead!

A. Their’s contains a correct apostrophe. B. Theirs should have the apostrophe after the s: theirs’. C. Theirs should not have an apostrophe.

13. The pools leaf covered surface did not invite Brandi to swim.

A. Pools does not need an apostrophe. B. Pools should have an apostrophe between the l and s: pool’s. C. Pools should have an apostrophe after the s: pools’.

14. In the morning, my dog Skeeter loves to sleep in the sunlight that pool’s on the living room floor.

A. Pool’s contains a correct apostrophe. B. You don’t put an apostrophe in pools. C. Pool’s should have the apostrophe after the s: pools’.

15. Delores’s leg jiggled while Professor Caldero explained the plagiarism penalties for the research essay.

A. Delores’s contains a correct apostrophe. B. You must spell the word like this: Deloreses.

16. Our mouths were so full of delicious brownie’s that we could not speak.

A. Brownie’s contains a correct apostrophe. B. Brownies should have the apostrophe after the s: brownies’. C. Brownies should not have an apostrophe.

17. Anthony try’s to enjoy his tropical fish, but the aquarium glass is filthy with algae.

A. Try’s contains a correct apostrophe. B. You must spell the word like this: trie’s. C. You must spell the word without an apostrophe: tries.

18. Marcus harasses his little sister Maggie by pulling her long braids.

A. Harasses does not need an apostrophe. B. You must spell the word with an apostrophe: harass’es.

19. Maggie looked up in time to swat Marcuses hand from her face.

A. Marcuses correctly shows possession. B. You must punctuate the word like this: Marcus’s.

20. Eva can’t believe her bad luck! First, her professor gave a pop quiz in chemistry, and now a water main break means the bathrooms are inoperable!

A. Means does not need an apostrophe. B. Means should have an apostrophe between the n and s: mean’s. C. Means should have an apostrophe after the s: means’.

©1997 - 2014 by Robin L. Simmons All Rights Reserved.

Name Date

Apostrophes – Exercise 2

This handout accompanies Exercise 2 of Grammar Bytes! Get the answers by doing the interactive version of the exercise at this address: http://chompchomp.com/exercises.htm

Directions: Choose the option that corrects an error in the underlined portions. If no error exists, choose “No change is necessary.”

1. To avoid muddy dog prints on Mom’s clean floor, we left the puppy’s in the backyard. A B C A. prints’ B. Moms C. puppies D. No change is necessary.

2. Strands of hair whipped Jessica’s face as the cold wind blew through the bare trees. A B C A. Strand’s B. Jessicas C. tree’s D. No change is necessary.

3. Even on the belts last hole, the baggy jeans keep sliding off Roger’s hips, making the poor A B C boy waddle like a penguin. A. belt’s B. jean’s C. Rogers D. No change is necessary.

4. Even after four cups of coffee, Melissa could’nt muster the energy to finish the journal A B assignments for Professor Koopman’s class. C A. cup’s B. couldn’t C. Koopmans D. No change is necessary.

5. The lawn mower’s roar woke Stephen from a sound sleep. He cursed his neighbor’s A B

dedication to yard maintenance and dove under the blanket’s. C A. mowers B. neighbors C. blankets D. No change is necessary.

6. The bed beckoned with it’s soft pillows and warm blankets, but Tommy still had 25 A problems to solve for Mr. Takashima’s algebra class. B C

A. its B. problems’ C. Takashimas D. No change is necessary.

7. Jeannette hated my Halloween costume, but she loves zombies, so she’ll like your’s. A B C A. zombie’s B. she’ill C. yours D. No change is necessary.

8. Lissette ca’nt believe her roommate’s bad manners; Alex has once again left the bathroom A B

sink full of shaving cream and whiskers. C A. can’t B. roommates C. whisker’s D. No change is necessary.

9. Esther’s eyeglasses are cloudy with fingerprints, but her brother Nile’s keeps his lenses A B C pristine. A. Esthers B. Niles C. lense’s D. No change is necessary.

10. Mrs. Majeed frowned as she glanced at the blue team’s answers. We certainly hope she A smile's when she sees ours. B C A. teams B. smiles C. our’s D. No change is necessary.

11. Every morning, Clarissa straightens her curls with a flat iron and reapply’s metallic pink A B polish to her fingernails. C A. curl’s B. reapplies C. fingernails’ D. No change is necessary.

12. Looking for signs of wear to disqualify the issue as mint, Sheldon inspected the comic A book’s corners and spine. B C A. sign’s B. books C. corners’ D. No change is necessary.

13. Antoine’s fingers are never still; if this young man isn’t drumming out a song on the desk, A B then he’s snapping a rubber band or twirling pens. C A. Antoines B. is’nt C. his D. No change is necessary.

14. Line’s of worry creased Samuel’s forehead as he scanned the quiz items. A B C A. Lines B. Samuels C. item’s D. No change is necessary.

15. The contents of Christina’s purse include tangled necklaces, an uncapped lip balm, and her A B roommates missing watch. C A. Christinas B. necklaces’ C. roommate’s D. No change is necessary.

16. Nicks collection of hats includes a ball cap shaped like a plate of tacos. A B C

A. Nick’s B. hats’ C. taco’s D. No change is necessary.

17. We could’nt see well from our seats, so when Byron and his friends left to buy popcorn, we A B stole theirs. C A. couldn’t B. friend’s C. their’s D. No change is necessary.

18. Ben’s bad attitude gets him in trouble in class. We need to convince Ben to uncross his A B arm’s and smile on occasion. C A. Bens’s B. get’s C. arms D. No change is necessary.

19. As James was writing his concluding paragraph, his pencil point broke. Rummaging in his A B book bag for another writing instrument, he hoped that his great last line’s wouldn’t escape. C A. Jame’s B. pencil’s C. lines D. No change is necessary.

20. Gloria covered her ears with her hands and focused on the quiz questions; she tried to A B ignore the techno music escaping from Chandler’s ear buds. C A. ear’s B. question’s C. Chandlers D. No change is necessary.

©1997 - 2014 by Robin L. Simmons All Rights Reserved.

Name Date

Apostrophes – Exercise 3

This handout accompanies Exercise 3 of Grammar Bytes! Get the answers by doing the interactive version of the exercise at this address: http://chompchomp.com/exercises.htm

Directions: Choose the option that corrects an error in the underlined portions. If no error exists, choose “No change is necessary.”

1. Outside, the sun makes Boris’s red hair glow with copper tone’s. A B C

A. make’s B. Borises C. tones D. No change is necessary.

2. Louies moustache has long waxed whiskers that curl down like walrus tusks. A B C

A. Louie’s B. whisker’s C. tusk’s D. No change is necessary.

3. Nick slammed the oven door shut when he discovered Mom’s burning pie’s inside. A B C

A. oven’s B. Moms C. pies D. No change is necessary.

4. Rebecca borrowed Elijahs baseball cap since she would have no chance of catching A fly balls with the sun right in her eyes. B C A. Elijah’s B. fly ball’s C. eye’s D. No change is necessary.

5. We notice that Phyllis always wash’s her hands, so if we try an hors d’oeuvre, we want A B one of hers. C A. alway’s B. washes C. her’s D. No change is necessary.

6. Missing apostrophes, overabundant commas, and abused semicolons make Deons A B C essay a mess.

A. apostrophe’s B. semicolon’s C. Deon’s D. No change is necessary.

7. Sam and Sara always have extra supplies, so if you forgot to bring a pencil, ask to borrow A B one of theirs. C

A. alway’s B. supply’s C. theirs’ D. No change is necessary.

8. Waves crashed on the beach, and clouds darkened the sky. The days rough conditions A B C convinced us to stay out of the water. A. Wave’s B. cloud’s C. day’s D. No change is necessary.

9. No matter what tool Kyle tried, he could’nt remove the rusty screws from the door frame. A B C A. couldn’t B. screw’s C. door’s D. No change is necessary.

10. Elephants are Jeremy’s favorite animal. He cringe’s every time he hears that poachers A B C have slaughtered another herd. A. Jeremys B. cringes C. poachers’ D. No change is necessary.

11. Zebras grazed in the zoos paddocks while tigers paced in concrete and iron cages. A B C A. zoo’s B. tiger’s C. cages’ D. No change is necessary.

12. Pedro never puts much effort into his cookies, but we slaved for hour’s on ours, so you A B C should definitely try one! A. cookie’s B. hours C. our’s D. No change is necessary.

13. I decided to borrow Elizabeth’s scarf because the colors matched my outfit, and she A B wouldn’t notice it was missing until hours after I left. C A. Elizabeths B. color’s C. would’nt D. No change is necessary.

14. Melody’s rendition of “I Will Always Love You” hurt our ears, but you have a nice singing A voice, so were hoping to enjoy yours. B C A. ear’s B. we’re C. your’s D. No change is necessary.

15. Ben stared at Jennifers reflection in the plate glass library window. He admired the many A curls that cascaded down her back and the pink poodle earrings dangling from her lobes. B C A. Jennifer’s B. curl’s C. earring’s D. No change is necessary.

16. After Alex skinned both of his knees, he propped his unicycle against the garage wall and A B no longer ride’s it.

C

A. knee’s B. garage’s C. rides D. No change is necessary.

17. Frances tried my chocolate-broccoli muffins and made a face. Maybe hell like yours better A B C since you use fresh broccoli.

A. muffin’s B. he’ll C. yours’ D. No change is necessary.

18. In the hot classroom, Warren’s glass’s kept slipping down his sweaty nose. A B C A. Warrens B. glasses C. he’s D. No change is necessary.

19. Hannah’s hackles rose at Jermaine’s criticism of her essay. Never mess with Hannah if she A B hasn’t had her coffee yet. C A. Hannahs B. Jermaines C. has’nt D. No change is necessary.

20. We will try the cupcakes because they are Tara’s, not yours. Unlike you, Tara doesn’t A B C sneeze into the mixing bowl! A. Taras B. your’s C. does’nt D. No change is necessary.

©1997 - 2014 by Robin L. Simmons All Rights Reserved.

Name Date

Apostrophes – Exercise 4

This handout accompanies Exercise 4 of Grammar Bytes! Get the answers by doing the interactive version of the exercise at this address: http://chompchomp.com/exercises.htm

Directions: Use an apostrophe or apostrophe + s to simplify the long phrase in bold. Write your new version in the box above the phrase.

1. The calculator that belongs to Jeffrey has keys sticky with peanut butter.

2. The sudden change of the stoplight made Shane slam on his breaks.

3. The bad table manners of Pedro include chewing and talking simultaneously. No wonder

Maria won’t agree to a date!

4. Curling outside the nostrils, the nose hair of Adam repulses Laurie, who sits across the

table.

5. The money that Elvis hides in the cookie jar is greasy with butter.

6. The stiff bristles on the brush do not apply paint smoothly.

7. A hungry crow snatched the half-eaten hot dog that Todd abandoned on the picnic

table.

8. The cell phone that Marco uses is shiny with potato chip grease.

9. The barrettes that Luciana wears in her hair are antiques from her great-grandmother.

10. At work, the sullen attitude that Harriet demonstrates inspires customers to take their

money elsewhere.

11. With their long necks, the giraffes have defoliated the top branches of the trees.

12. The clumsiness that plagues Anastasia makes wearing 4-inch heels impossible.

13. The dirtiness of the public restroom inspired Beatrice to wait until she got home to go.

14. The lack of grammatical control that Nicholas demonstrates translates into low

grades on essays.

15. Look at all of those teeth marks! That must be a pencil that belongs to Tobias.

16. All night, we listened to the loud party that the neighbors threw.

17. The annoyance that Erika experiences every time that Leonard burps at the dining room

table will soon mean he has to eat dinner on the sofa.

18. The perseverance that Isabelle showed in calculus has paid off with an A in the class.

19. The crusty surfaces of the dishes indicate that Ramsey hasn’t cleaned the kitchen in

days.

20. The insistent meowing of the cats tells Selena that it’s time to feed her seven felines.

©1997 - 2014 by Robin L. Simmons All Rights Reserved.

Name Date

Apostrophes – Exercise 5

This handout accompanies Exercise 5 of Grammar Bytes! Get the answers by doing the interactive version of the exercise at this address: http://chompchomp.com/exercises.htm

Directions: Use an apostrophe or apostrophe + s to simplify the long phrase in bold. Write your new version in the box above the phrase.

1. The hot pink high tops that Montgomery wore drew everyone’s attention.

2. Try the cookies that Phyllis baked. They are the best ones!

3. You need to clean the yard tools that you borrowed from Mr. Dickson. He’s very picky

about his possessions.

4. The messy notebook that Marc brings to class contains detailed notes from Dr.

Grayson’s tedious lectures.

5. The satisfaction that Kevin gets with a C means a GPA without scholarship potential.

6. Annistacia owns a big, powerful pit bull that intimidates everyone who meets him.

7. The vegetable garden that Gladys is always fertilizing has tomatoes the size of

softballs!

8. Read the essay that Curtis wrote. It’s so funny that you’ll snort your coffee!

9. The teacher for that class assigns twice as many essays as our teacher does.

10. Look at the grease stains! This paper must be homework from Francis. That boy is always

eating cafeteria French fries!

11. We didn’t want to destroy the nests the birds had built, so we waited until winter to cut

down the old oak tree.

12. The novels that Bliss never dusts fill the shelves of her many bookcases.

13. The wild plaid shirt that Carlos was wearing made Sara dizzy.

14. When we bought the used car from an old woman, we didn’t expect to find rap music in

the CD drive.

15. Hurry up and finish! You don’t want to experience the anger of our boss.

16. The cats that the neighbors adopted leave a trail of paw prints all over the hoods of our

cars.

17. You must pay back the money that Dad lent you if you want to avoid all the weekend

chores that he will assign.

18. Every morning at 3 a.m., the sprinkler system that the Weavers have waters the yard

illegally.

19. We shrieked with delight at the old photos in the high school yearbook that Mom found.

20. The impressive music collection that Warren has amassed is mostly illegal

downloads from the Internet.

©1997 - 2014 by Robin L. Simmons All Rights Reserved.