Apostrophe
/əˈpɒs.trə.fi/noun
A punctuation mark used to show possession or omitted letters, or a figure of speech addressing someone absent or imaginary.
Did you know?The punctuation mark was named after the rhetorical figure in Greek and Latin, where a speaker “turned away” from the audience to address someone absent, dead, or divine.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
apostrophē
“a turning away; in rhetoric, a turning away from the audience to address someone absent”
Late Latin
Latin
apostropha
“a rhetorical figure of turning aside”
Old French
Old French
apostrophe
“the rhetorical device; later the mark used in writing”
16th Century
English
apostrophe
“a mark indicating omission in writing, especially in printed texts”
Modern English
English
apostrophe
“the punctuation mark used for omission or possession, and the rhetorical figure of direct address”