Parisian Sex Shop Catastrophe

Emily, who is teaching English in Paris, found this apostrophe catastrophe in a sex shop in Paris. She writes, "My friends were more amused by the fact that sperm fancy dress outfits even exist, but as you can see I was disgusted by the punctuation."




"Even super heroes can't punctuate," Emily points out.

Practice safe punctuation, please, readers.

Thanks, Emily!

The Bear Owns the Bar

TT the Bear's Place will always hold a special place in my heart because it's the first bar at which I ever got a drink. So, I know its name is supposed to have an apostrophe in it. Apparently, Harpoon Brewery is not aware of this.

Thanks to my friend Alaina for taking this photo.

Wacky Worm Catastrophe

Leah sent me this apostrophe catastrophe that her brother found at a carnival in Revere, Mass.

Even without the catastrophe, what the heck is a "wacky worm photo"? The picture is weirding me out.

Thanks, Leah!

Rajon Rondo Playing for a Jewish Softball Team Apostrophe Catastrophe

This photo has been published elsewhere, but nonetheless, it may be my favorite apostrophe catastrophe of all time. At least until someone sends me one involving Kevin Garnett.

Rondo playing for a Jewish softball team?! With an apostrophe catastrophe on his t-shirt?! This just made my week. And that's saying a lot because the Celtics won last night and advanced to the second round of the playoffs. Woo!

Thanks to Bill for bringing this photo to my attention. And Go Celtics!

Double-Apostrophe Catastrophe

Jaclyn sent me this photo from a convenience store that recently changed from a White Hen Pantry.

Perhaps Jia couldn't decide which direction an apostrophe should face (as opposed to as single quote mark), so she decided to put both.

Thanks, Jaclyn!

Tiara Catastrophe

Jillian sent me this picture from a store in upstate New York.

It looks like a cute idea for a business, but sadly, it's marred by the apostrophe catastrophe in the word tiaras.

Thanks, Jillian!

But I Did Not Mock the Deputy

Jon sent this apostrophe catastrophe from a St. Patrick's Day parade.

Perhaps this sign is more of a missing-word catastrophe. Should it be "sheriff's office"?

Thanks, Jon!

Iron-Clad Catastrophe

After a recent trip to Calgary, Chim sent me four catastrophes. Here's another it's vs. its error, and this one is permanently embossed on a plaque.

Thanks, Chim!

Double Apostrophe Catastrophe from a Library

My friend Natalie was horrified to find this double apostrophe catastrophe at the Medford Public Library.

Some style guides recommend using an apostrophe in abbreviations such as DVD, but since the videos has a catastrophe in it, I'm going to assume that DVD's is a mistake too.

Thanks, Natalie!

Charity Poster Catastrophe

This event seems like a great cause, but the top line of this poster (kid's cancer buzz-off) implies that the charity is for only one kid.

Sadly, we know that there are many kids with cancer, so this poster is grammatically incorrect.

Shout-out to Market Basket for sponsoring this event, though. Seriously, you guys rock!

It Is What It Is

My cousin sent me this apostrophe catastrophe from the parking lot of a Sheraton in Warwick, Rhode Island.

He says he would expect to see this kind of sloppy punctuation at a Super 8 but not a Sheraton.

I have been noticing a lot of confusion between its and it's lately. I think a lot of people think that they should include an apostrophe to show possession, but its is already a possessive pronoun.

Thanks, Joe!

Crazy Bad Punctuation

This food stand from a craft show in Vermont makes the same mistake three times.

I guess they are adamant that fry's is the plural of fry. With French fries on nearly every menu in America, I don't understand how anyone could screw up its spelling.

Thanks to Hannah for sending in this triple catastrophe!

Catastrophe on the Iditarod Trail

An anonymous reader sent me this catastrophic sign from the Idatarod Trail.

"It's the last great race," she writes, "but unfortunately, not the last great apostrophe catastrophe."

Thanks, Anonymous!

Code Blue for this 'Hosprital' Sign

Amusing articles in the Sun and the Daily Mail report that St. Luke's Hospital in England made two critical mistakes on its new sign.

Here's the image from the Daily Mail:


"Hospital" is misspelled the second time, and the name of the facility needs an apostrophe. I'm not sure why "No" is capitalized in the last sentence and why there is no period at the end either.

I know the NHS is perpetually hurting for money, but they could have at least sprung for a proofreader. This sign is in need of emergency care.

Coffee Catastrophe

I am definitely a coffee addict, but I'd have to boycott this product, which Axelat0r spotted at a gas station, because it confuses its with it's in the description.


Its is a pronoun that shows ownership; it's means "it is."

Axelat0r originally posted this on Fuse, so check it out there.

Thanks, Axelat0r!