does anyone need another example of positive ANYMORE?

Charles Doyle cdoyle at UGA.EDU
Thu Feb 14 14:06:38 UTC 2008


Have we (or has MM) addressed the perennially vexing question of how to spell the possessive form of "y'all"?  I often see "y'all's," but I would insist on the spelling "y'alls" because [1] two apostrophes in the same word look funny and [2] personal pronouns don't typically show an apostrophe before the possessive ending "-s."

--Charlie
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---- Original message ----
>Date: Wed, 13 Feb 2008 22:06:24 EST
>From: RonButters at AOL.COM
>
>If I'm not mistaken, Michael Montgomery gave a fine paper on the subject of "ya'all" versus "y'all" versus "ya'll" some years ago. Maybe it was published as well.
>
>Seems to me also somewhat akin to people named e.g. "Tom and Mary Marshall" (never see this on the porches of same-sex couples) who hang signs on their front porch saying things like "The Marshall's"!
>
>In a message dated 2/13/08 9:57:10 PM, jharbeck at SYMPATICO.CA writes:
>
>
>> As you can see, this came through a bit funny to me, but it appears that she is spelling "y'all" as "ya'll". I see this with a certain frequency, and it interests me WRT the mental process it evidences. I have to assume it's by analogy with I'll and you'll without analysis of the different contractions, but please feel free to disabuse me if I'm mistaken.
>>
>> James Harbeck.

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