Editor's Corner

Let’s end our discussion of the possessive with one of the topics that can be more confusing to folks. What do you do to indicate that two people own one gargoyle? What do you do to indicate that two people each own separate cauldrons? Here is the “Joint versus separate possession” article from the Chicago Manual of Style.

Closely linked nouns are considered a single unit in forming the possessive when the thing being “possessed” is the same for both; only the second element takes the possessive form.

· my aunt and uncle’s house

· Gilbert and Sullivan’s Iolanthe

· Minneapolis and Saint Paul’s transportation system

When the things possessed are discrete, both nouns take the possessive form.

· my aunt’s and uncle’s medical profiles

· Dylan’s and Jagger’s hairlines

· New York’s and Chicago’s transportation systems

· Gilbert’s or Sullivan’s mustache

Kara Church

Technical Editor, Advisory

619-542-6773 | Ext: 766773

Symitar Documentation Services

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As promised, we’re back this week with more on the possessive. Today I thought I’d ease into the week with the way the possessive is used in certain expressions. The Chicago Manual of Style provides an entire section on “for . . . sake” expressions and provides clarification about whether to use the “s apostrophe” or “apostrophe s.”

First, these “for . . . sake” expressions contain a singular noun that ends in an s, and just gets an apostrophe at the end:

· for goodness’ sake

· for righteousness’ sake

And this second group is formed normally with the “apostrophe s”:

· for expedience’s sake

· for appearance’s sake (or for appearances’ sake [plural possessive] or for the sake of appearance)

· for Jesus’s sake

Similarly, there are expressions based on the “old genitive case.” Honestly, that sounds like it belongs in dentistry, but according to CMOS, the genitive in these phrases implies the word “of.”

· in three days’ time

· an hour’s delay (or a one-hour delay)

· six months’ leave of absence (or a six-month leave of absence)

Kara Church

Technical Editor, Advisory

619-542-6773 | Ext: 766773

Symitar Documentation Services

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Today I have something simple for you: three words. I liked the sound of them and the meanings, and thought you might enjoy them, too!

Have a lovely weekend and try not to ferhoodle your friends or weekend plans!

From Dictionary.com:

snickersnee

noun
1. a knife, especially one used as a weapon.

Origin

Snickersnee came to English in the late 1600s from the Dutch steken meaning "to stick" and snijden meaning "to cut."

jejune

adjective
1. without interest or significance; dull; insipid: a jejune novel.
2. juvenile; immature; childish: jejune behavior.

Origin

Jejune comes from the Latin word jjnus meaning "empty, poor, mean."

ferhoodle

verb
1. Chiefly Pennsylvania German Area. to confuse or mix up: Don’t ferhoodle the things in that drawer.

Origin

Ferhoodle comes from the Pennsylvania German term verhuddle meaning "to tangle" and is related to the German word verhudeln meaning "to bungle, botch."

Kara Church

Technical Editor, Advisory

619-542-6773 | Ext: 766773

Symitar Documentation Services

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Just when you thought you’d seen all there was to see about the possessive forms of nouns, I’m here to bring you more! Even the title of this section sounds a little kooky: “Possessive of nouns plural in form, singular in meaning.” What could the Chicago Manual of Style be talking about? Let’s have a look:

When the singular form of a noun ending in s is the same as the plural (i.e., the plural is uninflected), the possessives of both are formed by the addition of an apostrophe only. If ambiguity threatens, use of to avoid the possessive.

· politics’ true meaning

· economics’ forerunners

· this species’ first record (or, better, the first record of this species)

The same rule applies when the name of a place or an organization or a publication (or the last element in the name) is a plural form ending in s, such as the United States, even though the entity is singular.

· the United States’ role in international law

· Highland Hills’ late mayor

· Callaway Gardens’ former curator

· the National Academy of Sciences’ new policy

But wait! There’s more! Since it is almost the weekend, though, I will give you a break and continue with these rules next week.

Kara Church

Technical Editor, Advisory

619-542-6773 | Ext: 766773

Symitar Documentation Services

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Hello, my friends! Today you get a mid-week, two-for-one lesson on possessive forms. Our subtopics for the day are names ending in an unpronounced “s” (thank you, France) and how to make the possessive form of classical names ending in “s,” like Euripides. From the Chicago Manual of Style:

Possessive of words and names ending with the unpronounced “s”

In a return to Chicago’s earlier practice, words and names ending in an unpronounced s form the possessive in the usual way (with the addition of an apostrophe and an s). This practice not only recognizes that the additional s is often pronounced but adds to the appearance of consistency with the possessive forms of other types of proper nouns.

· Descartes’s three dreams

· the marquis’s mother

· François’s efforts to learn English

· Vaucouleurs’s assistance to Joan of Arc

· Albert Camus’s novels

Possessive of names like “Euripides”

In a departure from earlier practice, Chicago no longer recommends the traditional exception for proper classical names of two or more syllables that end in an eez sound. Such names form the possessive in the usual way (though when these forms are spoken, the additional s is generally not pronounced).

· Euripides’s tragedies

· the Ganges’s source

· Xerxes’s armies

Kara Church

Technical Editor, Advisory

619-542-6773 | Ext: 766773

Symitar Documentation Services

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Welcome back to lesson two about the possessive form of nouns! Last week we looked at the singular, basic form, which is usually the noun plus ’s. Today we’re going to look at how that rule applies to proper nouns, including the trickier ones that end with s, x, or z (whether singular or plural).

We’ll also have a look at numbers.

From the Chicago Manual of Style:

Singular Forms

· Kansas’s legislature

· Chicago’s lakefront

· Marx’s theories

· Jesus’s adherents

· Berlioz’s works

· Tacitus’s Histories

· Borges’s library

· Dickens’s novels

· Malraux’s masterpiece

· Josquin des Prez’s motets [KC – From Merriam-Webster, a motet is “a short piece of sacred choral music, typically
polyphonic and unaccompanied.”]

Plural Forms

· the Lincolns’ marriage

· the Williamses’ new house

· the Martinezes’ daughter

· dinner at the Browns’ (that is, at the Browns’ place)

Letters and Numbers

· FDR’s legacy

· 1999’s heaviest snowstorm [KC – But if you are talking about the years in a decade, you would write “The biggest snow storm of the 1980s was in my imagination.” Or perhaps, “They found two cats in the
‘00s and adopted both of them.”]

Kara Church

Technical Editor, Advisory

619-542-6773 | Ext: 766773

Symitar Documentation Services

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Good morning, and feliz día de los muertos!

Today, I’m talking about i.e. and e.g. Kara discussed these abbreviations recently. But they were part of a larger discussion about Latin expressions, and since many people misuse these abbreviations, we should look at them more closely.

I imagine that people misuse these abbreviations because people don’t really know what they mean. That’s one reason the editors try to get you to avoid them altogether. But before we ban them outright, let’s make sure we all understand what they stand for.

· I.e. stands for the Latin term id est, which roughly means that is or in other words.

· E.g. stands for the Latin term exempli gratia, which means for example.

Grammar Girl has a few tips to help you remember which is which:

· I.e. starts with the letter i, and so does the term in other words.
E.g. begins with the letter e and so does example.

· E.g. sounds like egg as in “egg sample.”

Now, let’s go back to my comment explaining that the editors prefer that you avoid these terms, because I know some of you are itching to debate that suggestion. There is a method to our madness. You see, these terms don’t only confuse writers, they also confuse readers. It is usually a lot easier for everyone involved to use the phrase “for example” or the phrase “that is.” So, unless you are really short on space and you only have room for the abbreviations, it’s best to spell it out. If you do insist on using them, be sure that you get them right!

If you want to watch a short video from Merriam-Webster explaining i.e. and e.g., click here.

Donna Bradley Burcher | Senior Technical Editor | Symitar®

8985 Balboa Ave. | San Diego, CA 92123 | Ph. 619.278.0432 | Ext: 765432

It’s Friday, which means it is time for more misheard song lyrics (a.k.a. mondegreens) from Hold Me Closer, Tony Danza, by Charles Grosvenor Jr.

I hope you all enjoy your Halloween tomorrow, and then All Saints Day, Dia de los Muertos, and the end of Daylight Savings Time on Sunday.

Kara Church

Technical Editor, Advisory

619-542-6773 | Ext: 766773

Symitar Documentation Services

NOTICE: This electronic mail message and any files transmitted with it are intended
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Over the last month or so, I’ve received a lot of inquiries about the possessive form of certain nouns or names. I thought maybe now would be a good time for a review, since many people are preparing to send out party invitations for Thanksgiving and other holidays.

Today we start with the most basic rule, from the Chicago Manual of Style:

The possessive of most singular nouns is formed by adding an apostrophe and an s. The possessive of plural nouns (except for a few irregular plurals, like children, that do not end in s) is formed by adding an apostrophe only.

· the horse’s mouth

· a bass’s stripes

· puppies’ paws

· children’s literature

· a herd of sheep’s mysterious disappearance

Kara Church

Technical Editor, Advisory

619-542-6773 | Ext: 766773

Symitar Documentation Services

NOTICE: This electronic mail message and any files transmitted with it are intended
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I’ve only included this address for the info on writing the Editor’s Corner. I wasn’t planning on doing anything special, though.

Tweet <>

Kara Church

Technical Editor, Advisory

619-542-6773 | Ext: 766773

Symitar Documentation Services

From: Jane Gredvig
Sent: Wednesday, October 28, 2015 9:26 AM
To: Kara Church <KChurch@jackhenry.com>
Subject: Lottery Doc: Twitter

I am writing a lottery doc on maintaining our @Symitar_EpisysU twitter account. It will have both administrative tasks (like updating Shawn’s statistics page) and tweeting/posting goals/best practices.

Are you interested in adding anything under the admin section about how to link your blog posts to the twitter account for Editor’s Corner? Or are you writing your own doc for that?

Jane Gredvig

Advanced Instructional Design Specialist

Symitar®, a Jack Henry & Associates company

8985 Balboa Avenue

San Diego, CA 92123

Direct Line: (619) 542-7062

Direct Fax: (800) 611-2043

Questions about training?

Contact SymEducation

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