Veterans Day, Possessives and Attributive Nouns
As we honor our veterans today, I got to thinking about the name of the day itself.
Which is correct: Veterans’ Day, Veteran’s Day, Veterans Day?
To figure it out, we need to examine each term.
- Veterans’ Day is a plural noun in the possessive case
- Veteran’s Day is a singular noun in the possessive case
- Veterans Day is a plural noun, not possessive case (that is called an attributive, meaning it serves as a modifier and does not need to be possessive).
In deciding what is the correct term, we need to decide if the term “Veteran” should be possessive or if it is a modifier. To make things more complicated (ah, the complexity of the English language), there is no one rule here. So the best way to determine what term to use is to consult a dictionary or a style guide. Webster’s goes with “Veterans Day” as does the AP Stylebook. A quick look at today’s newspapers confirms the widespread use of “Veterans Day.”