apostrophe

A noun with two distinct meanings: a rhetorical device where a speaker addresses an absent or imaginary person, and a punctuation mark (') used to indicate omitted letters or possession.

• 🇪🇸Sustantivo con dos significados distintos: una figura retórica en la que el hablante se dirige a una persona ausente o imaginaria, y el signo ortográfico (') que indica la omisión de letras o posesión.

1. Rhetorical device C1 formal

   A figure of speech in which a speaker directly addresses an absent or imaginary person, or a personified abstraction.

   • In his speech, he used an apostrophe to address the spirit of freedom.
   • The poet's apostrophe to the moon is a classic example.
   • She cried out in an apostrophe to her lost friend.

   🇪🇸Apostrofe (figura retórica)

2. Punctuation mark A2 formal

   The punctuation mark (') used to indicate the omission of letters or figures, the possessive case, or the plural of letters or figures.

   • The word 'don't' uses an apostrophe to show missing letters.
   • The cat's toy has an apostrophe to show possession.
   • Mind your p's and q's – the apostrophe is used for the plural of letters.

   🇪🇸Apóstrofo (signo ortográfico)

• apostrophes plural form
• apostrophes' possessive plural form
• apostrophe's possessive singular form