Quick Question and cats

[erastes]

If I talk about Fortums – as in "Fortnum and Mason” and I say “I got my sofa from Fortnums” – should Fortnums have an apostrophe??

I hate my language betimes.

ETA: SORTED! thank you aunty_marion  and semioticwarrior  

As regular readers will know – I had a chair next to the “winter radiator” for Lili but Lucius and her had been vying for it.

 

So – being a Nice Mummy – I put a second chair there, so they had one each.

 

 

Which worked pretty well.  Until this morning, when I came down to find THIS.

head desk.

Comments

[semioticwarrior.livejournal.com]

Yes, there should be an apostrophe.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

BUT WHERE?????


*flails in stupidity *

Fortnum's or Fortnums'

[aunty_marion]

Fortnum's.

[aunty_marion]

Typical bloody cats! I remember the time Strider (in userpic) pushed my flatmate out of bed by s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g and gradually pushing Carol further and further towards the edge; I looked in the bedroom and Carol was asleep (!) on the floor, and Strider looking very smug in the middle of the bed.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Thank you kindly. My character really should know, but he's a man... :)

[erastes.livejournal.com]

LOL - your flatmate is nicer than me!!!

[xbeyondinsanex.livejournal.com]

LMAO OF COURSE.

Me? Pedantic?

[aunty_marion]

The shop was started by Mr Fortnum and Mr Mason. So its name is Fornum and Mason. You'd say "from Fortnum and Mason's" in full, or more usually just "from Fortnum's."

[erastes.livejournal.com]

The boys both let her get away with murder, they really do. They are both twice her size, but she's in charge.

[crawling-angel.livejournal.com]

Go Lilibabycakes!

Was she asking whether her bum looked big on two chairs?

[erastes.livejournal.com]

I don't know how she did it - the gap between the chairs is pretty big and she's not a big cat.

Are you watching De-Lovely? - it's so GOOD!!!

[crawling-angel.livejournal.com]

Nah, I'm watching Bottom...and thinking about sleep.

Aw, bless her lil ass.

[mysid.livejournal.com]

Marion has already told you the correct way, so I'll merely point out that it would only be Fortnums' if the store belonged to more than one Fortnum. Since it was founded by one Fortnum, it must be Fortnum's.

Amazing cat you have.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Thank you - my grammar school education didn't actually bother with grammar, can you believe!! I didn't even know the basic rules for apostrophes until about six years ago! Just as well I never started a greengrocers. greengrocer's. Whatever. :)