Use/ apostrophe

Use/ apostrophe
Message from simone90 posted on 04-04-2018 at 18:24:11 (D | E | F)
Hello everyone!
Would like to have some tips on how to know when the apostrophe is necessary in English. According to what I've learned from English courses/materials, apostrophes are usually used to show possession. Although it may be tricky to me because these two expressions are translated exactly the same in Portuguese: cement efficiency and cement's efficiency
For exemple, now I am working on a scientific paper and I've got this sentence: the co-product efficiency was confirmed.
In this case, I should rather write co-product's efficiency?
Could anyone help me on that, please?
Thanks

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Edited by lucile83 on 04-04-2018 22:37

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Re: Use/ apostrophe from gerondif, posted on 04-04-2018 at 19:06:27 (D | E)
Hello,
Normally, the genitive case applies when a human being is the owner:
The room of your sister becomes your sister's room.
The rooms of your sisters becomes your sisters' rooms.
's used to be used in expressions of :
duration: a two hours' film
distance: a twenty miles' run
price: twenty pounds' worth of food
date : today's paper

But you can also use a compound-noun :
a ten metres'yacht has a tendency to become a ten-metre-long yacht, where metre can't be put into the plural as it is adjectival.
I would prefer the co-product efficiency because product is not a human being.
I know that you might meet "the door's handle" and so on but still....

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Re: Use/ apostrophe from simone90, posted on 04-04-2018 at 21:01:21 (D | E)
Thank you! It was really helpful! I appreciated it

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Re: Use/ apostrophe from frank00scap, posted on 20-04-2018 at 00:51:00 (D | E)
Hello,
An apostrophe is also used when forming a contraction with verbs.
I am fine.
I'm fine.

We have arrived.
We've arrived.

The apostrophe indicates that letters are missing.
An apostrophe is also used in correctly written bad English, as in the dialog of a novel.
I came because you called.
I came 'cause you called: the "be" is missing when the character says 'cause.
But, be careful, because "cause" to mean "because" when you write in a chat is totally wrong. The word "cause" is a noun meaning "reason." For example, the cause of the war was a dispute over water rights.
To say 'cause in a conversation is also wrong...it is bad English... but is common slang. You can use it with your friends, but if you use it in a job interview, the interviewer will assume you really don't know English well enough for the job.

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Edited by lucile83 on 20-04-2018 07:35

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