Q. My boss has told me that our company name should not have an apostrophe+s after it in proposals, reports, or text, even in a possessive situation. Her primary stated reason was that “it is cumbersome.” I understand, if we are talking about “the BigFirm Stress Team.” But in an instance like “One of BigFirm past projects,” I do not think it makes sense. If the intent of the sentence is to express ownership, you need an indication of that, which should be done with ’s, correct? I would prefer to say that we should tend toward the use of the attributive (“the BigFirm Stress Team”) but that there are instances where it would be more correct to use the possessive, in which case, we would: “One of BigFirm’s greatest success stories.” What do you think?
A. I agree. The attributive does not work in every context. If you are forced to use only the attributive, then the syntax must be edited to accommodate it. If your boss refuses to budge on this, you might have to look into that BigFirm Stress Team.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I am agitated about the institutional inconsistency on this point and found the College Board to be of no help, so I turn
to you. What is the proper treatment of an associate degree? As I have stated it, or is it “associates”
or “associate’s”?
A. Someday someone will do something about institutional inconsistency, and then we can all retire. Meanwhile, both “associate
degree” and “associate’s degree” are
widely used, and they both seem reasonable and logical. Even if the board never decides on one or the other, you can.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Which is the correct singular possessive form? “Professor Davis’ class” or “Professor Davis’s class”? My history professor specifically requests our guide be the CMOS. Am I wrong that CMOS promotes both usages in this case?
A. In its 15th edition, CMOS allowed the style shown in your first example, but as of the 16th edition it is no longer recommended, although it is not incorrect and other style guides might allow it. You’ll be safe if you add the s, even if your professor’s CMOS isn’t up to date.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I just received a thank-you card from a recently married couple. Their card said, “Thank you for coming
to John and I’s wedding.” I know this is incorrect, but what is the proper way
of saying this? Wouldn’t “John’s and my wedding”
suggest two separate weddings instead of one joint wedding? But “Thank you for coming to John and my
wedding” doesn’t sound correct, either. Please help. This might drive me nuts.
A. This is confusing because if a first-person pronoun weren’t part of the subject, we would write, for
instance, “John and Beth’s wedding.” But you’re
on the right track: we write “John’s wedding” and “my
wedding,” so “John’s and my wedding”
is correct. (For two separate weddings, write “weddings.”) If you leave “John”
unpossessive, you’ll end up with ambiguities like “My best friend adored John
and my wedding.”
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I’m writing a book about Death Valley National Park, and not sure what style to use for place-names
that include possessives. The National Park Service omits apostrophes from all names—Scottys Castle,
Dantes View, Devils Golf Course, etc.—which looks wrong to me. On the other hand, if I use the apostrophes
my book won’t match the Park Service maps. What would you suggest?
A. Sometimes it’s difficult to determine a “correct” version
of a place-name, but unless you are sure that one of these names is a plural attributive rather than a possessive (e.g., Devils
Golf Course), you need an apostrophe. If you feel better including a note in your book that the Park Service uses its own
spellings, do so.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I’ve encountered a sentence that is giving me more confusion than it should. The sentence in question is this: “Enjoyment is not as an important function for courting as it is for dating.” I cannot figure out if it should read “as important a function.” I think if I could figure out what grammatical function “as” is serving in this sentence, I could make sense of it, but I have been staring at it long enough to addle my brain.
A. Although your editing will put it right, the “as . . . as” construction (adverb and conjunction, respectively) is not always clear or economical. It would be better to trim and rephrase: “Enjoyment is less important for courting than for dating.” (As for the difference between courting and dating and why it’s okay for courting to be less fun, I assume you’re investigating.)
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I’m editing a book about employment training programs, and I can’t decide how
to treat the term One-Stop Career Centers. I capitalize in that instance, but what about when the author says “one-stops”
or “one-stop centers”? I am inclined to capitalize only when the entire title
is used, but I’m having trouble sticking to that decision. Can you please tell me what you would do?
A. If the centers the author mentions all belong to a business franchise called One-Stop Career Centers, the short versions
are One-Stops and One-Stop centers (or One-Stop Centers if the author insists). If the author refers more generally to these
types of centers—that is, if there are other kinds of centers that feature one-stop service, such as
one-stop medical centers or one-stop auto repair centers—then lowercase: one-stop centers, one-stops.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. What is the proper way to cite information found in a footnote? Take, for example, the following footnote: “2.
It is however to be observed that in the given proposition there is a certain ambiguity.” I wish to
cite this in the footnote of my own paper. In some works, I’ve seen what I suspect to be the same thing
accomplished by appending the page number with “f,” e.g., 67f.
A. That f actually stands for “and the following page.” The letter n is used to stand for a note (whether endnote or footnote): 67n2.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. We’re hosting a golf tournament where each hole has a refreshment station sponsored by a corporate
vendor. For each of the hole signs, we wrote “Refreshments Sponsor” and then put
the corporate logo on it. My coworker says each sign should read “Refreshment Sponsor”
with the argument that you wouldn’t say “Beverages Sponsor.”
What say you?
A. Sometimes an attributive becomes conventional in the singular (toy store), and sometimes in the plural (ladies room). Often
we choose by ear and it doesn’t matter (employee lounge, employees lounge). But “refreshments”
connotes something slightly different from “refreshment,” and if you check a dictionary,
you’ll find that the plural is best suited for your signs.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. What is the correct punctuation for an event or location for a group? I have the following examples: delegates’
reception, members’ forum, speakers’ room. Is it correct to always use the apostrophe
in this way? Thanks.
A. Always? It’s always correct to form the plural possessive with an apostrophe in that way, but it is
not always necessary to use the plural possessive in writing about an event or location for a group. An attributive will often
do just as well (VIP lounge), in which case you don’t need the apostrophe.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]