A noun is a part of speech that names a person, place, thing, action, feeling or ideal. Possessive nouns show ownership. Plural nouns show a quantity of more than one. Plural possessive nouns incorporate the concepts of ownership and "more than one."
Plural Nouns Ending with S
To show possession with regular plural nouns that end with "s," simply add an apostrophe at the end.
Examples of this type of plural possessive noun include:
- Airplanes' wings
- Alarms' ringing
- Ankles' bones
- Appendices' entries
- Armchairs' arms
- Attorneys' fees
- Babies' rash
- Bathrooms' taps
- Bosses' orders
- Boys' club
- Bushes' flowers
- Calves' hooves
- Carpenters' tools
- Chairs' paintwork
- Children's hats
- Clocks' hands
- Companies' plan
- Countries' governments
- Designers' clothes
- Dishes' patterns
- Dogs' adventures
- Girls' sports
- Investors' advice
- Knives' blades
- Loaves' nutrition
- Mosquitoes' stingers
- Parents' books
- Pears' stories
- Potatoes' skin
- Rabbis' garb
- Smiths' grandchild
- Theses' criteria
- Trucks' wheels
- Witnesses' testimony
Sentence Examples
- Umbrellas' handles are sometimes carved.
- Witches' hats are usually pointed.
- Judges' wigs were powered in the old days.
- The fairies' wings were iridescent.
- Cherries' stones can break your teeth if you are not careful.
- The tables' legs were all wobbly and needed repair.
Irregular Plural Nouns Ending Without S
With irregular plural nouns that do not end with "s," add an apostrophe and "s." Examples are:
- Bacteria's invasion
- Cacti's protection
- Children's toys
- Criteria's timeline
- Die's roll
- Foci's interest
- Fungi's proliferation
- Gentlemen's association
- Lice's intrusion
- Media's influence
- Men's worries
- Mice's feet
- Nuclei's composition
- People's beliefs
- Phenomena's appearance
- Oxen's yokes
- Stimuli's effect
- Syllabi's needs
- Teeth's cavities
- Women's issues
Sentence Examples
- Dolphins got caught in the fishermen's nets.
- Postmen's bags are made of leather.
- The geese's eggs were found on the road, smashed.
- Hippopotami's mouths are huge.
- Servicemen's fees rise after hours and on weekends.
- Octopi's arms number eight and have several functions
Compound Words
With compound words, if the plural form ends with "s," add only an apostrophe. Examples are:
- Brides-maids' gowns
- Couch potatoes' snacks
- Cupfuls' number
- Fact sheets' predictions
- Half-brothers' excitement
- Hang-ups' attitudes
- Know-it-alls' conceit
- Pocketfuls' amount
- Printouts' clarity
- Run-throughs' length
- Salesclerks' tips
- School days' length
- Teaspoonfuls' number
- Time frames' adjustment
- Toothbrushes' heads
- Two-year olds' tantrums
- Vice presidents' duties
- Vice presidents' offices
- Waiting rooms' decor
- Wheeler-dealers' bargains
Sentence Examples
- The drive-ins' lines were all very long.
- Our get-togethers' offerings were diverse and plentiful.
- The hand-me-downs' stains were hard to get out.
- My photocopies' font color turned out too dim.
- The ground waters' contamination was extreme.
If the plural form does not end with "s," add "s" and an apostrophe. Examples are:
- Attorneys at law's charges
- Attorneys General's mandates
- Brothers-in-law's role
- Colonels-in-chief's agenda
- Editors-in-chief's opinions
- Fathers-in-law's obligations
- Forefeet's condition
- Lookers-on's opinions
- Orders-in-council's decisions
- Passersby's frowns
- Poets laureate's awards
- Runners-up's trophies
- Sisters-in-law's friendships
- Snowmen's noses
- Sticks-in-the-mud's behavior
- Boatmen's supplies
Sentence Examples
- The Captains of the Guard's insignia was impressive.
- Both mothers-in-law's dresses were blue.
- All Chiefs of Staff's appointment were deserved.
- Past Speakers of the House's attire was different.
- Workmen's compensation is available if you are injured on the job.
Plural Possessive Noun Examples
These examples help to illustrate many different types of plural possessive nouns. For more examples, check out Examples of Possessive Nouns. Need some practice? YourDictionary also has worksheets to use to practice with plural nouns and possessive nouns.