In the phrase beginners guide to …, where should the apostrophe go?
- Beginner’s Guide to […]
- Beginners’ Guide to […]
In my particular case, this is the title for a presentation so there are multiple beginners that are being addressed.
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MetaEd
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Simon P Stevens
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<< Beginners guide >> and << experts guide >> with the plural-form attributive (in sound mimicking the traditional possessive forms) are becoming more commonly seen today. The comparable << working mens clubs >>, << writers guilds >>, << childrens clothing departments >> and of course << dogs homes >> are mentioned in other threads. – Edwin Ashworth Apr 30 '21 at 14:30
3 Answers
15
If your intention is to address each member of the audience directly, I suggest you prefix the phrase with an appropriate article, as in:
A Beginner's Guide to Shoe Hurling
or
The Beginner's Guide to Shoe Hurling
The use of the apostrophe before s seems more apt in this context.
Although:
Beginners' Guide to Shoe Hurling
is also grammatically correct, but would make your presentation sound impersonal.
12
You can argue cogently for either position:
Beginner's Guide - this is a guide for one beginner at a time (and is probably the best choice)
Beginners' Guide - this is a guide for all beginners at the same time.
However, normally one person is reading (one copy of) a text at a time, and therefore "Beginner's" is the more normal. It is more likely that you will be perceived as not knowing how to handle apostrophes if you use "Beginners'".
Jonathan Leffler
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Thanks. So in the context of a presentation given to multiple people, the second is the better choice? – Simon P Stevens Nov 28 '10 at 17:40
