Apostrophes for Possession - Worksheets, Questions and Revision

17 original exam-style questions - 8 pages of questions with a full mark scheme - free printable PDF.

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KS2 · Grammar

Y3.6 Apostrophes for Possession

Calculators not allowed · about 40 minutes
Total Marks
Name: _______________________________    Date: ____ / ____ / ______
Answer ALL questions. Show all your working.

A Trip to Green Meadows Farm

Source written for Revision Library (original, copyright-free). Written specifically for this grammar worksheet pack; not derived from or based on any published work, past paper or copyrighted text.

On Monday, Class 3P visited Green Meadows Farm for a special science day. Mr Adeyemi's minibus arrived at nine in the morning, and the children's excitement grew as soon as they saw the animals. Ellie's favourite part was feeding the goats, while Tomasz preferred watching the farmer's dog round up the sheep. The twins' job was to collect the hens' eggs from the coop, and they counted fifteen eggs in total. At lunchtime, everyone sat beside the pond and opened their lunchboxes, and the children's sandwiches soon attracted a curious duck. The farmer showed the class the pigs' pen and explained how the animals' food was prepared each morning. Before leaving, the pupils thanked Mrs Bell, the farm manager, for her time, and admired how the neighbouring farmers' fields stretched all the way to the hills. It had been a wonderful day, and the children's books were soon full of notes for their school project.

1
An apostrophe can show that something belongs to someone (possession). Read the situation given, then tick the sentence that shows the possessive apostrophe in the correct place.
(a)One dog owns a bone.(1)
  • A) The dogs bone was chomped in seconds.
  • B) The dog's bone was chomped in seconds.
  • C) The dogs' bone was chomped in seconds.
(b)More than one girl owns a scooter each.(1)
  • A) The girl's scooters were left in the hall.
  • B) The girls's scooters were left in the hall.
  • C) The girls' scooters were left in the hall.
(c)The children (more than one child) own a den.(1)
  • A) The childrens' den was built from branches.
  • B) The children's den was built from branches.
  • C) The childrens den was built from branches.
(d)More than one teacher owns the car park.(1)
  • A) The teachers' car park was full.
  • B) The teacher's car park was full.
  • C) The teachers car park was full.
2
The sentences below are taken from the passage above. Underline the possessive noun in each one.
(a)Mr Adeyemi's minibus arrived at nine in the morning.(1)
(b)Ellie's favourite part was feeding the goats.(1)
(c)The farmer showed the class the pigs' pen.(1)
(d)The farmer explained how the animals' food was prepared each morning.(1)
(e)The children's books were soon full of notes for their school project.(1)
3
Sort the six words in the box below into the correct column of the table according to what each one shows.
Word bank: birds | bird's | birds' | teachers | teacher's | teachers'
Plain plural (no possession)Singular possessivePlural possessive
(6)
4
Tick the three sentences below that use a possessive apostrophe correctly.
  • A) The dog's bone was buried in the yard.
  • B) The dogs bone was buried in the yard.
  • C) The boys' den was hidden in the woods.
  • D) The boys's den was hidden in the woods.
  • E) The mice's cage needed cleaning.
  • F) The mens coats were hung on pegs.
5
Rewrite each sentence below, adding an apostrophe to show that one person or thing owns something.
(a)The dogs lead is hanging by the door.(1)
(b)Priyas book was left on the bus.(1)
(c)The suns rays felt warm on their skin.(1)
(d)The rabbits cage needs cleaning.(1)
6
Rewrite each sentence below, adding an apostrophe to show that the plural noun (which already ends in -s) owns something.
(a)The students bags were piled by the door.(1)
(b)The dancers costumes sparkled under the lights.(1)
(c)The two brothers bikes were parked outside.(1)
(d)The players kit was hung in the changing room.(1)
7
Rewrite each sentence below, adding the missing apostrophe to show possession. Each plural noun is irregular - it does not end in -s.
(a)The mens boots were covered in mud.(1)
(b)The womens choir sang beautifully.(1)
(c)The peoples opinions were varied.(1)
(d)The mices tails were long and thin.(1)
8
Circle the correct word from each pair to complete the sentence.
(a)The (dogs / dog's) tail wagged happily.(1)
  • dogs
  • dog's
(b)The (dogs / dog's) barked loudly in the park.(1)
  • dogs
  • dog's
(c)The (girls / girls') tent was pitched beside the lake.(1)
  • girls
  • girls'
(d)The (children / children's) laughter filled the playground.(1)
  • children
  • children's
9
Complete the table below by writing the singular possessive and plural possessive form of each noun.
NounSingular possessive (one owner)Plural possessive (more than one owner)
lion
driver
child
(6)
10
Read the two sentences below.

A) My cousin's tent leaked in the rain.
B) My cousins' tent leaked in the rain.

Explain how the position of the apostrophe changes the meaning of the two sentences.
(2)
11
Each pair of sentences below has one apostrophe mistake in the second sentence. Find the mistake and write the second sentence out correctly.
(a)Sarah has one cat.
The cats' bowl was always empty.(1)
(b)The two brothers share a bedroom.
The brother's posters covered the walls.(1)
(c)There is one teacher in the classroom.
The teachers's classroom was very tidy.(1)
(d)Six children share a toy box.
The childrens toys were packed away.(1)
12
The paragraph below describes more of the class trip to Green Meadows Farm described at the top of this pack. It contains three apostrophe errors for showing possession. Find the three errors, then rewrite the paragraph with all three corrected.

After lunch, Ellies wellies got stuck in the mud beside the pond, so Tomasz pulled her free. Mrs Bell explained that the farm's twelve sheeps wool would be sheared before next spring, and that the ducks nest hidden in the reeds belonged to a family of eight birds.
(3)
13
Look again at the passage 'A Trip to Green Meadows Farm' at the top of this pack. Find and write down three more possessive nouns from the passage. Do not use Mr Adeyemi's, Ellie's, pigs', animals' or children's - these already appeared in Question 2.
(3)
14
Look at the two sentences below.

A) We bought three kilogram's of apple's from the farm shop.
B) We bought three kilograms of apples from the farm shop.

Tick the sentence that uses apostrophes correctly, then explain in one sentence why the other sentence is wrong.
  • A) We bought three kilogram's of apple's from the farm shop.
  • B) We bought three kilograms of apples from the farm shop.
15
Circle the sentence that correctly shows singular possession for a name that already ends in the letter s.
  • A) Thomas' school bag was left on the bus.
  • B) Thomas's school bag was left on the bus.
  • C) Thomass school bag was left on the bus.
16
Write one sentence of your own for each instruction below. Use a correctly punctuated possessive apostrophe each time.
(a)Write a sentence showing that one dog owns a lead.(1)
(b)Write a sentence showing that two or more friends share a den (a plural noun that already ends in -s).(1)
(c)Write a sentence showing that the children (an irregular plural) own something.(1)
17
Write a short paragraph (two to three sentences) about a school event of your own choosing (for example, a sports day, a school trip or an assembly). Your paragraph must include: one correctly punctuated singular possessive noun, one correctly punctuated plural possessive noun (a regular plural ending in -s), and one correctly punctuated irregular plural possessive noun. Underline all three possessive nouns in your paragraph.
(4)
Mark scheme · Y3.6 Apostrophes for Possession

Question 1

Question 2

Question 3

Question 4

Question 5

Question 6

Question 7

Question 8

Question 9

Question 10

Question 11

Question 12

Question 13

Question 14

Question 15

Question 16

Question 17