Examkin

Question

Difficulty: MediumApostrophes for Possessives and Contractions

After the library acquired the rare medieval manuscript, several local scholars' primary concern was it's fragile binding, which required immediate conservation.

Which of the following choices best completes the underlined portion of the sentence?

  1. A
    NO CHANGE
  2. scholars' primary concern was itsAnswer
  3. C
    scholar's primary concern was its
  4. D
    scholars' primary concern was its'

Answer

The correct answer uses the plural possessive noun 'scholars'' followed by the singular possessive pronoun 'its' without an apostrophe.
The correct option correctly applies standard punctuation rules: 'scholars'' is the plural possessive form matching the plural context 'several,' and 'its' is the correct possessive pronoun modifying 'fragile binding.'

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Determine if the noun 'scholars' should be singular or plural, and possessive.
The word 'several' indicates that the noun is plural ('scholars'). Since the concern belongs to these scholars, the plural possessive form 'scholars'' is required.
Plural nouns ending in 's' form the possessive by adding an apostrophe after the 's'.
2
Determine whether to use a contraction or a possessive pronoun for the manuscript's binding.
The sentence requires the possessive pronoun 'its' to modify 'fragile binding.' The contraction 'it's' (it is) is incorrect in this context.
Possessive pronouns do not take apostrophes, whereas 'it's' is a contraction.

Key Concept

Apostrophes for Possessives and Contractions
Rate this question

Topics

Apostrophes for Possessives and Contractions

More questions from this topic