Apostrophe Meaning
/əˈpɒs.tɹə.fi/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounThe text character ’, which serves as a punctuation mark in various languages and as a diacritical mark in certain rare contexts.
nounA sudden exclamatory piece of dialogue addressed to someone or something, especially absent.
Sentence Examples
TDK has decided to abolish the use of apostrophe in names of institutions.
I changed the apostrophe to the straight one that we use.
CEFR Practice Quiz
In the word don't, the ____ shows where letters are missing.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
In the word 'don't', the ____ is used to show a missing letter.
Word Origin & History
From French apostrophe, or Latin apostrophus, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστροφος (apóstrophos, “accent of elision”), a noun use of an adjective from ἀποστρέφω (apostréphō, “to turn away”), from ἀπό (apó, “away from”) + στρέφω (stréphō, “to turn”).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Since its inception the apostrophe has been a controversial piece of punctuation."
— 2021, Claire Cock-Starkey, Hyphens & Hashtags, Bodleian Library, page 30:
"Apostrophe a bold digression makes,
Mov'd by some sudden thought the theme awakes."
— 1835, L[arret] Langley, “[Rhetorical Figures.] Apostrophe.”, in A Manual of the Figures of Rhetoric, […], Doncaster, South Yorkshire: […] C. White, […], →OCLC, page 28:
"The warm apostrophe of Riccardini to this little representative of his parents, whom he called "the son of his love, the child of his old age, the gift of his beloved niece, on the behalf of his angel-daughter," affected them all;..."
— 1842, [anonymous collaborator of Letitia Elizabeth Landon], chapter XXXIV, in Lady Anne Granard; or, Keeping up Appearances. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 139:
"As is well known, chloroplast in the epistrophe position presents an oval or more or less circular form; in the apostrophe position a flattened and lenticular form."
— 1905 September 8, Harold Wager, “On Some Problems of Cell Structure and Physiology”, in English Mechanics and the World of Science, volume 82, number 2111, page 105:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
In the word don't, the ____ shows where letters are missing.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
In the word 'don't', the ____ is used to show a missing letter.