Moms or Moms’ or Mom’s? (Helpful Examples)

You’ll find “moms,” “moms’,” and “mom’s” used in similar contexts, yet each one applies differently. Have you ever wondered what all the forms mean?

This article will help you understand all there is to know about each form.

Moms or Moms’ or Mom’s?

“Moms” is only the plural form, meaning that multiple “moms” are present. “Mom’s” is the singular possessive form. Here, one mom owns an object (i.e. “my mom’s car”). “Moms'” is the plural possessive form, where multiple moms can own an object (i.e. “the moms’ club”).

Check out this rundown to see which form applies to which context:

Singular	Mom
Plural	Moms
Singular possessive	Mom’s
Plural possessive	Moms’

Adding an “‘s” to the end of the singular form creates the singular possessive form. You should use “mom’s” when one mom owns an object. The object in question can come before or after “mom’s” in the sentence. It’s more likely to come after (i.e. “my mom’s wedding”).

You only need an apostrophe after the plural form for the plural possessive form. Grammar rules teach us that a repeated “s” after an apostrophe is often redundant. Therefore, “moms” becomes “moms'” rather than “moms’s” (i.e. “both moms’ children”).

Mom’s

“Mom’s” is the singular possessive form. This works when only one mom owns an object, though the object can come before or after the possessive noun in this form. You’ll often find the object after “mom’s,” as this is clearer to the reader.

The apostrophe is used to offset the possessive form here. It helps to show people what is owned by one mother:

• My mom’s birthday is coming up soon. I really hope she likes the gift I got for her.
• You have your mom’s eyes. I can’t believe how beautiful they look in the light.

Sometimes, the object comes first, and that looks like the following:

• The handbag is my mom’s.

Moms’

“Moms'” is the plural possessive form. This form applies when many moms own an object. You will usually find the object directly after “moms’,” which will be in the plural form.

Possessive forms allow nouns to own other nouns. This helps to set up direct ownership, allowing the reader to understand what the group of moms might own.

• The moms’ night is still going ahead. We hope you can all be there to make the most of it.
• Many of the moms’ problems with his teaching methods are clear. We need to help the kids.

Moms

“Moms” is not a possessive form but is still used. In fact, it’s probably the most common form of everything in this article.

“Moms” is the plural form, meaning multiple “moms” are referred to in the same sentence. You can use the plural form with quantifiers (i.e. “two moms” or “many moms”).

The apostrophe is the mark of the possessive form. No apostrophe is present when “moms” is used in this way. Therefore, you are using the plural form rather than the possessive.

• We have a few moms coming to the meeting today. Hopefully, they’re going to be nice to us.
• I don’t think these moms know what’s good for their kids. I hate that about the world today!

Conclusion

“Moms” only works as the plural form. No possession is used here.

Possession comes in when “mom’s” or “moms'” are used.

You can use “mom’s” when one mom owns an item (i.e. “mom’s umbrella”). This is the singular possessive form.

“Moms'” shows that many moms own a similar group of items. This is the plural possessive form.