Apostrophe

[jack]

http://www.balancetv.ca/balancetv/cl...idNews=269&pgL=
1. Hickling describes menstruation as the uterus changing its' bed once a month. (What does 'its' ' mean?)
2. You need to be advocates for your child. (What does 'advocates' mean? How come it isn't 'advocated'?

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=gateway
3. Also called gateway. (Is this correct? How come there is no determiner?)
4. Also called a gateway.
5. Also called router.
6. Also called a router.

http://www.oup.com/elt/oald/
If you look up 'credit', 'money in bank' shows up.
7. money in (a/the) bank (Is this correct? How come there is no determiner?)

Originally Posted by jack

http://www.balancetv.ca/balancetv/cl...idNews=269&pgL=
1. Hickling describes menstruation as the uterus changing its' bed once a month. (What does 'its' ' mean?)

The writer clearly intends to mean 'belonging to it', ie the uterus. His use of the apostrophe is wrong, of course. Some very good native English speaking writers get very confused about the use of apostrophes, especially when applied to 'it'.

Originally Posted by jack

2. You need to be advocates for your child. (What does 'advocates' mean? How come it isn't 'advocated'?

'Advocated' is the past tense of the verb 'advocate', whereas the writer intends the plural of the noun 'advocate', probably in the sense of "a person who works in support of another". The remark is probably aimed at both parents.

"You need to be advocated for your child" wouldn't actually make much sense.

Originally Posted by jack

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=gateway
3. Also called gateway. (Is this correct? How come there is no determiner?)
4. Also called a gateway.
5. Also called router.
6. Also called a router.

http://www.oup.com/elt/oald/
If you look up 'credit', 'money in bank' shows up.
7. money in (a/the) bank (Is this correct? How come there is no determiner?)

It's just a sort of shorthand, I think. It's not grammatically right, but the meaning's quite clear. Newspaper headlines usually drop articles too.

[jack]

It's just a sort of shorthand, I think. It's not grammatically right, but the meaning's quite clear. Newspaper headlines usually drop articles too.

Thanks.
What should I read to improve my english? Do books use a lot of shorthand too?

Are these both correct? If so, how do I know which one to use?
1. Let’s get ready for tomorrow’s flyer.
2. Let’s get ready for tomorrow flyer. (If this is incorrect, why? Isn't 'tommorow' an adjective?)

What do these mean?
3. I need your driving license.
4. I need your driver's license. (Does it matter if I use apostrophe or not?)
5. I need your driver license. (If this is incorrect, why?)

For this, does it matter if I use apostrophe or not? Like when I'm talking to someone, does it matter of I use an apostrophe or not? Sometimes I know I have to use an apostrophe for eg. 'Jack's car' I cannot say 'Jack Car'. But for this situation where I can use both, which one should I use?
6. He is a Microsoft guy
7. He is a Microsoft’s guy

8. Welcome to Mcdonald's resurant. (Is 'Mcdonald' a person's name? For people, I have to use an apostrophe right?))
9. Welcome to Mcdonald resturant. (So this is not right?)

10. Welcome to Mcdonald.
11. Welcome to Mcdonald's.

Originally Posted by jack

What should I read to improve my english? Do books use a lot of shorthand too?

Novels don't. Some textbooks might. You should read modern novels using everyday language, or those textbooks designed to improve your English. Reading newpapers and magazines is okay, but don't expect correct grammar in headlines or advertisements.

Originally Posted by jack

Are these both correct? If so, how do I know which one to use?
1. Let’s get ready for tomorrow’s flyer.
2. Let’s get ready for tomorrow flyer. (If this is incorrect, why? Isn't 'tommorow' an adjective?)

The second one is certainly incorrect. 'Tomorrow' is not an adjective.
What kind of 'flyer' did you have in mind, by the way?

Originally Posted by jack

What do these mean?
3. I need your driving license.
4. I need your driver's license. (Does it matter if I use apostrophe or not?)

These refer to the same license. 'Driving license' means 'license to drive', and 'driver's license' means 'license belonging to the driver'.

Originally Posted by jack

5. I need your driver license. (If this is incorrect, why?)

It is incorrect. A driving licence permits driving.... it does not permit 'driver'.

Similarly, you could refer to a 'hunting license', or a 'hunter's license', but you wouldn't refer to a 'hunter license'..... 'fishing license', or 'fisherman's license', but not 'fisher license'.

Originally Posted by jack

For this, does it matter if I use apostrophe or not? Like when I'm talking to someone, does it matter of I use an apostrophe or not?

You cannot use an apostrophe in talking, as it is a punctuation mark (though we do say things like "that's what I was talking about" when we are actually refering to something we'd written). :)

Originally Posted by jack

Sometimes I know I have to use an apostrophe for eg. 'Jack's car' I cannot say 'Jack Car'. But for this situation where I can use both, which one should I use?

Originally Posted by jack

6. He is a Microsoft guy
7. He is a Microsoft’s guy

"He is a Microsoft guy" (he likes Microsoft products).
"He is Microsoft's guy" (He is the representitive from Microsoft).
NOT "He is a Microsoft's guy" (it's incorrect to use a with 's).

Originally Posted by jack

8. Welcome to Mcdonald's resurant. (Is 'Mcdonald' a person's name? For people, I have to use an apostrophe right?))

McDonald is a persons name, though it's a fictional character. The name of the restaurant is McDonald's.

Originally Posted by jack

9. Welcome to Mcdonald resturant. (So this is not right?)

No, it's not right.

Originally Posted by jack

10. Welcome to Mcdonald.

Incorrect. You are being welcomed to the restaurant, not to McDonald himself.

Originally Posted by jack

11. Welcome to Mcdonald's.

Correct, and the most common form. Let's call it shorthand.

[jack]

Thanks.

10. Welcome to Mcdonald.

Incorrect. You are being welcomed to the restaurant, not to McDonald himself.

So that means I'm am welcomed to 'the restaruant' not 'Mcdonald's resturant'? What do you mean by 'not to Mcdonald himself'?)

1. Welcome to Jack's Restaurant.
2. Welcome to Jack. (This means, I am not welcomed to the person?)

[Tdol]

The restaurant's name is MacDonald's, so you should say 'Welcome to Macdonald's'

So that means I'm am welcomed to 'the restaruant' not 'Mcdonald's resturant'? What do you mean by 'not to Mcdonald himself'?)

1. Welcome to Jack's Restaurant.
2. Welcome to Jack. (This means, I am not welcomed to the person?)

It doesn't mean anything at all. It doesn't make sense.

You can be welcomed to a restaurant. "Welcome to the restaurant." (Perhaps it's McDonalds).

You can be welcomed to McDonald's restaurant. "Welcome to McDonald's restaurant."

You can b welcomed to McDonald's, which is a restaurant. "Welcome to McDonald's."

All are equally acceptable.

You cannot be welcomed to McDonald, because McDonald is the name of a person, not a restaurant, so "Welcome to McDonald" is NOT acceptable.

You would not usually be welcomed to a person. I can only think of one exception, and it has a very different meaning....

"I'm bored with my wife. She keeps going to McDonald's, and she's growing fat. If you still want her, you're welcome to her."

[jack]

"I'm bored with my wife. She keeps going to McDonald's, and she's growing fat. If you still want her, you're welcome to her."

Thanks. This is useful.

What do these mean? Both of these sentences work? So when I'm talking to someone, does it matter which one I use?
1. Maximize your system performance with more memory.
2. Maximize your system's performance with more memory.

You can be welcomed to McDonald's restaurant. "Welcome to McDonald's restaurant."

How come you didn't use a determiner? What do these mean?
1. You can be welcomed to a McDonald's restaurant. (This sounds funny, why?)
2. You can be welcomed to the McDonald's restaurant.
3. You can be welcomed to McDonald's restaurant.

Originally Posted by jack

What do these mean? Both of these sentences work?
1. Maximize your system performance with more memory.
2. Maximize your system's performance with more memory.

They mean the same thing. "System's performance" just means the performance of the system....

Originally Posted by jack

"How come you didn't use a determiner?

It wasn't necessary, and I was trying to stay close to the form of the sentence I was describing. No-one would welcome you to a McDonald's restaurant by saying "Welcome to a McDonald's Restaurant."

What do these mean?
1. You can be welcomed to a McDonald's restaurant. (This sounds funny, why?)

It sounds okay to me, actually, but it's probably not quite right, grammatically speaking. It's strange, because we wouldn't normally use a with 's. You wouldn't, for example, say "a Paul's shirt."
"You can be welcomed to a branch of McDonald's Restaurant" is probably better.

2. You can be welcomed to the McDonald's restaurant.

This does sounds funny, partly for the same reason.... you wouldn't say 'the Paul's shirt'.... but mostly because 'the' means that it's the only one (really, we all know there are thousands of McDonald's restaurants), or the only one in a given situation....

You could say "I'll meet you at the McDonald's restaurant in Littleton", if there's only one McDonald's Restaurant in Littleton. Even then, it's not necessary. You could just say "I'll meet you at McDonald's Restaurant in Littleton."

3. You can be welcomed to McDonald's restaurant.

They all mean the same thing.

[jack]

Thanks for the explanation.