Grammar Police v Wedding Party *MNHQ tweaked title at OP's request*

[WillLiveLifeAgain]

I'm usually OK with grammar but this one has me scratching my head. Probably lack of sleep (not over this).

Went to a wedding at the weekend. They had one of those neon signs with their surname but added an apostrophe. So it said

The Smith's (name changed)

Shouldn't it have said The Smiths? There were four of them including children. Not one belonging to something/someone.

I'm very happy to be proved wrong. I'm not a grammar nazi but would hope something like that would have been right?

I know this is AIBU so disclaimer obviously what matters is the happy marriage of two loving people not an apostrophe.

@Lollypop701 I presume the misspelling of stationery was on purpose! (Sorry if it wasn't!)

Absolutely was 😂

No idea as my pen's a s'hort one.

Of course it’s colloquial. Perfectly harmless turn of phrase IMO. There was a poster on here the other week that was attacked for using the term ‘Irish Twins’
She herself was Irish. Everyone that commented saying it wasn’t offensive was Irish, the person who was offended by it wasn’t Irish.

@Errors
Lots of Irish people do find it offensive though because of how the term developed and the history of its use (I'm Irish). But Irish people don't have a hive mind and others aren't bothered by it...most especially if they're not aware of that history.

It's probably a term that's best avoided unless you're sure of your audience. It's controversial at the very least. Lots of people don't know that however and there is usually no intention to offend. That makes all the difference imho.

Sometimes people do get extremely defensive when their mistake/lack of awareness is pointed out to them and that doesn't help either. It also doesn't help that the 'pointing out' bit isn't very polite on occasion! All online usually. People behave better in real life and let things slide and give others the benefit of the doubt etc.

Shame 4 year olds aren't writing shop signs, then.

If it’s on a blackboard, aren’t you tempted to rub the offending apostrophe out?

I’m sure I would be!

We have a pizza place opposite the local primary school. The banner advertises it as 'Wood fire'd pizza'
Drives me mad lol!

You mean- Your rite.

As it is now wrong to correct people’s spelling and grammar, maybe the tattooist knew it was wrong but didn’t feel able to tell their client?

I know sign writers and printers will make exactly what they are told. They do not check spelling and grammar: that’s entirely down to the customer.

In my own case I had a couple of excruciating years working for a company that took its name from a word that forms a plural by adding an es. However they decided that an apostrophe looked better. I used to cringe every time I had to spell it. Think Box’s. Even as a plural it made no sense!

possessive apostrophe ... makes no sense, and certainly grinds my gears....

Ah silly me 😂😂😂😂 Of course it should have been your rite! Or should that be of coarse it should of been your rite 🤔

Apostrophes creep in everywhere! I have a double-barrelled name and when I spelled it out recently, the lady wrote ' instead of -

She appeared to be a native speaker of English. I understand names like D'Eath, but I don't know how she thought Jones'Rodrigues could possibly be correct!

.....should of been your .....

No - .....should of bean yaw....

I think that typing or dictating messages on to phones and other devices might be encouraging the escalation in grammar and spelling mistakes. My phone keeps suggesting 'they're' instead of 'there' and is as free with its apostrophes as any greengrocer with his carrot's and pear's and so on.

😁 😁 😁