Q. A friend of John or a friend of John’s? I’ve heard that both are correct. A friend
tossed the famous ambiguity at me this way: “A student of Einstein.” Unless it’s
Einstein’s, then it might be taken to mean a student who is working on Einstein.
A. It is best, and, what is more, perfectly idiomatic, to use the double genitive when “one of So-and-so’s”
is what you have in mind:
a student of his (that is, one of his students)
a student of Einstein’s (that is, one of Einstein’s students)
Then you have the liberty of writing “a student of Einstein” to mean by contrast
either someone who is working on the great theoretical physicist as a scholarly subject or, more broadly, someone who is a
close observer of Einstein and his work.
Fowler’s notes in its third edition that such phrases as “a student of his” are illogical—one
of the “freaks of idiom” (pp. 542–43). In any case, your
friend’s “student of Einstein” example is an excellent refutation
of those who would avoid the apostrophe s at all costs.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. My husband owns a production company with his brother. The name of the company is Deep-Dish Pictures. The brothers would
like to state on their video jacket that the film is: A PEPPERONI BROTHERS FILM. No one in the production company can agree
if it should be: A PEPPERONI BROTHERS FILM, A PEPPERONI BROTHER’S FILM, or A PEPPERONI BROTHERS’
FILM. [Company and surname changed for this forum.] Please help!!!! Thanks!
A. It should be “a Pepperoni brothers film” because “Pepperoni
brothers” is functioning as an adjective (it is a film by the Pepperoni brothers; compare “employees’ cafeteria,”
a cafeteria for employees). “Pepperoni brothers” can also function possessively:
I saw the Pepperoni brothers’ first film last year.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Which is correct? (a) He has 15 years’ experience designing software, or (b) He has 15 years experience designing software. I’ve seen it written both ways. I believe “years” needs an apostrophe. If he has 15 years of experience, that would translate to “15 years’ experience.” Right? Please help.
A. You are absolutely right. Analogous to possessives, and formed like them, are certain expressions based on the old genitive case. As your question implies, the genitive here implies of. For some examples, see CMOS 7.25.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Would the phrase “The Board of Trustees meeting” be considered an attributive noun? Or should possession be indicated with an apostrophe? Thank you for your assistance.
A. Better to write “board of trustees’ meeting.” When it is a matter of drawing the line between the possessive (or genitive) form and the attributive (adjectival) form, CMOS generally sides with the former, adding the apostrophe unless there’s no possessive meaning or unless it is a matter of an official, published form that does not carry the apostrophe. See paragraph 7.27 for examples.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I have suddenly become an editor and am having trouble on a daily basis with the numeric use of decades. First, is “the
90s” or “the ’90s” correct? We often
see the apostrophe omitted these days. Next, if a sentence contains the phrase, “Perhaps the 70s best
director . . .” (meaning, the best director of that decade),
“70s” is both plural and possessive. Should it be “70’s”?
“70s’”? Other than reconstructing the sentence, what’s
an editor to do?
A. Strictly speaking, ’90s, with the apostrophe, is correct.
The ’70s’ finest director was Martin Scorsese, particularly for his work on Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore and Taxi Driver.
Note the apostrophes, both of them. You are always free to write “seventies’ finest.”
Or, “The finest director of the ’70s was assuredly Francis Ford Coppola, for his
work on the first two Godfather films and Apocalypse Now.”
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. When indicating possession of a word that ends in s, is it correct to repeat the s after using an apostrophe? For example, which is correct: “Dickens’ novel” or “Dickens’s novel”?
A. Either is correct, though we prefer the latter. Please consult CMOS 7.16–19 for a full discussion of the rules for forming the possessive of proper nouns. For a discussion of the alternative practice of simply adding an apostrophe to form the possessive of proper nouns ending in s, see paragraph 7.22.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]