The English language can be a tricky mistress. But when expressed well, she’s a beauty. If you’re a copywriter or blogger, I assume you already know the basics of how to make things plural (i.e., man → men, child → children, wife → wives, etc.). Instead, I created this guide on how to make things plural with five tricky writing situations in mind.

Acronyms

For some reason, when an abbreviation is written in all caps, it’s tempting to put an apostrophe after it. Don’t! When pluralizing an acronym, simply add an –s. And make that s lower case.

CEO → CEOs
SEO → SEOs
CTR → CTRs
APB → APBs
CD  → CDs

And yes, that includes acronyms that end in –s. RSS → RSSs. POS → POSs. I know, it looks a little funny. But I promise… there’s no reason to add an apostrophe. If it bothers you, reword your copy so you don’t have to use it — substitute RSS feeds or POS systems, for example. Just be sure not to be redundant: “PIN numbers” and “ATM machines” are both redundant because the last letter of the acronym stands for number and machine, respectively. To make these acronyms plural, simply write PINs or ATMs.

Hyphenated nouns and compound nouns

When dealing with a hyphenated noun or a noun that is modified by a preposition, only pluralize the noun portion. For instance:

call-to-action → calls-to-action
board of director → boards of directors
father-in-law → fathers-in-law
lady-in-waiting → ladies-in-waiting
maid of honor → maids of honor
right of way → rights of way

Some compound nouns are nouns modified by an adjective. Once again, only pluralize the noun portion. Examples:

attorney general → attorneys general
past life → past lives
six-pack → six-packs
full moon → full moons

Last Names

A few years ago, Slate put together the best guide I’ve seen for pluralizing last names in the context of sending Christmas cards. Because I don’t see a reason to reinvent the wheel, I’ll simply quote it here:

Pluralization FAQs
Q: What if my last name ends in a y?
A: Add an –s. Do not add –ies or an apostrophe. Merry Christmas from the Murphys. 
Q: What if my last name already ends in an s?
A: Add –es. Do not add an apostrophe. Season’s greetings from the Simmonses.
Q: What if the end of my last name normally functions as an irregular noun?
A: It is not irregular when it is part of a last name. Happy holidays from the Hoffmans. Warm wishes from the Wolfs. 
Q: What would adding an apostrophe do?
A: It would hurt Tiny Tim make your last name possessive.
Q: Is there ever a reason to add an apostrophe?
A: Only if you want to make your last name possessive.
Q: Why do people add apostrophes?
A: I have no idea.

Nouns that end in –o

Most nouns that end in –o are pluralized by adding an –s, such as silos. But some take –es instead:

embargo → embargoes
veto → vetoes
echo → echoes
potato → potatoes (who remembers Dan Quayle?)
hero → heroes
echo → echoes

This is also a good place to mention one of my pet peeves: Dos and Don’ts (not Do’s and Don’ts with an apostrophe on the Do). After I recently commented on a blog on Medium, the writer kindly responded,

You know, I struggled with that before I wrote the post. I wasn’t sure which was correct. I did some research and came across this post by Mignon Fogarty (aka Grammar Girl). She writes, in part, “The Chicago Manual of Style and others recommend dos and don’ts. The Associated Press and others recommend do’s and don’ts. …Unless your editor wishes otherwise, if you write books, spell it dos and don’ts; and if you write for newspapers, magazines, or the Web, spell it do’s and don’ts.”

I simply don’t agree with the AP. I don’t believe it decreases confusion; otherwise (as Mignon notes), we’d have to use Do’s and Don’t’s to keep the parallel structure. Gross.

Once and for all: Dos and Don’ts. I’m also looking at you, How-tos.

Decades

When you’re pluralizing decades, be careful. Apostrophes here are tricky because you sometimes need them. If you’re leaving off the first two digits of a four-digit era, put an apostrophe at the beginning.

the 1970s → the ’70s
the 2000s → the ’00s
1980s-era fashion → ’80s-era fashion
protests of the 1960s → protests of the ’60s

DON’T put an apostrophe before the s:

Incorrect: 1980’s, 90’s, 2000’s
Correct: 1980s, 1990s, 2000s or ’80s, ’90s, ’00s

You only use an apostrophe before an s to make it possessive, not to pluralize it. (Have you sensed a theme yet?)

Need more help with grammar in your copywriting and blogs?

If you’re interested in checking the grammar in your writing, I recommend installing Grammarly. This browser addition instantly proofreads your text (including social media posts and emails) for correct grammar and punctuation. I wrote about Grammarly and three other helpful writing apps that I use here.

Kim Kohatsu
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