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boys basketball team or boys' basketball team

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by Shaggy, Feb 9, 2010.

  1. Shaggy

    Shaggy Guest

    When referring to your local high school's basketball team.

    Discuss.
     
  2. spup1122

    spup1122 New Member

    No apostrophe.
     
  3. flexmaster33

    flexmaster33 Well-Known Member

    No apostrophe...agreed
     
  4. schiezainc

    schiezainc Well-Known Member

    I've been told it's no apostrophe for boys and girls but it is there for men's and women's. Is that accurate?
     
  5. Riddick

    Riddick Active Member

    yup. crazy, huh?
     
  6. Ace

    Ace Well-Known Member

    I hate the apostrophe there, but if you have it for men's and women's how can you say that you don't need it for boys' and girls'?
     
  7. deskslave

    deskslave Active Member

    Because men is already plural.

    When we say boys basketball, we're not saying basketball belonging to boys. We're saying basketball played by boys. Boys is an adjective, not a possessive noun. We could technically say boy basketball, but for lack of a better phrase, that doesn't sound right.

    Similarly, it would sound silly and wrong to say men basketball team. So we say men's. But because mens would be pluralizing a plural (the equivalent of boyses), we add the apostrophe instead.

    That men's is also the possessive form of men is merely a red herring.
     
  8. Wonderlic

    Wonderlic Member

    [​IMG]

    Quite the lesson. Well done.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 15, 2014
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