# Possessives

In general, to form a possessive, follow these guidelines.

For singular nouns, including those that end in *s*, add *'s* to the end of the word.

Recommended: Modify each vector's record.

Recommended: Raise the storage class's quota.

For plural nouns that end in *s*, add only an apostrophe to the end of the word.

Recommended: Extend the models' capabilities.

Not recommended: Extend the models's
capabilities.

For plural nouns that don't end in *s*, add *'s* to the end of the word.

If a possessive seems awkward, rewrite the sentence to omit the possessive.

Recommended: Analyze the business data.

Not recommended: Analyze the businesses' data.

Recommended: The rule that the Federal Trade
Commission (FTC) issued.

Not recommended: The Federal Trade
Commission's (FTC's) rule.

Avoid using *'s* to form a plural noun. For more information, see [Pluralization](https://developers.google.com/style/pluralization).

## Product, feature, and company names

When describing function or performance, don't form a possessive from a
feature name, product name, or trademark, regardless of who owns it. Instead,
use the name as a modifier or rewrite to use a word like *of* to indicate
the relationship.

Recommended: You can use this template to
monitor Google Search performance.

Recommended: You can use this template to
monitor the performance of Google Search.

Not recommended: You can use this template to
monitor Google Search's performance.

To form the possessive of a company name, add *'s* to the end of the name. Don't form the
possessive of a company name when using it as a trademark.

Recommended: Google's new office is
nearby.

Not recommended: The capabilities of
Google's Search are vast.
For information about using trademarks as adjectives, not nouns, see [Trademarks](https://developers.google.com/style/trademarks#use-trademarks-as-adjectives).

## Code items

Don't form the possessive of a code item. Instead, form the possessive from the noun that
follows the code item or rewrite to avoid the possessive form.

Recommended: Compare the number to the
`wordCount` method's return value.

Recommended: Compare the number to the
value returned by the `wordCount` method.

Not recommended: Compare the number to
`wordCount`'s return value.

For more information, see [Grammatical treatment of code
elements](https://developers.google.com/style/code-in-text#grammatical-treatment-of-code-elements).