Apostrophe For Intermediate learners
What Is an Apostrophe?
An apostrophe (Apostroph) is a punctuation mark used in German mainly to show that letters are missing or to mark special name forms. Compared to English, it is used much less and has fewer official functions. Most apostrophes in German appear in shortened words, spoken language, and special name forms.
Usage
Apostrophe can be used in the following situations:
Omitted Letters
Fixed Short Forms
Genitive of Names
Omitted Letters
The most common use of the apostrophe is to show that letters have been left out. This is typical in informal writing, dialogues, and spoken language. It often replaces missing vowels or syllables.
Ich hab' keine Zeit.
I have no time.
Ich geh' nach Hause.
I'm going home.
Fixed Short Forms
Some shortened forms and place names are written with apostrophes. These forms are fixed and must be learned individually. They are mainly used in informal contexts.
Wir treffen uns in D'dorf.
We're meeting in Düsseldorf.
Er wohnt am Ku'damm.
He lives on Kurfürstendamm.
Genitive of Names
If a name ends in an s-sound (s, x, z, tz, ce), German uses only an apostrophe in the genitive, without adding another -s. This shows possession in special name forms.
Moritz' Lehrer ist sehr streng.
Moritz's teacher is very strict.
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