Apostrophes or is it apostrophe's?

[Veronica]

I think some of the rules are unnecessarily complex. For example, the whole lie, lay, laid, and lain thing should be tossed out and redone.

This gives my fifth graders fits! I try to approach it with which one needs a direct object. You lay "something" down. Or you, yourself, lie down and take a nap.


Of course once you move into the past tense, all bets are off.

Veronica

[goldfinch]

This gives my fifth graders fits! I try to approach it with which one needs a direct object. You lay "something" down. Or you, yourself, lie down and take a nap.


Of course once you move into the past tense, all bets are off.

Veronica

Yup. My feeling is to drop lay as the past tense of lie.