Skip the Apostrophe

When you’re typing on your smartphone—hey, it could happen—don’t bother typing the apostrophe. If you tap out dont or cant or itll, your phone automatically puts in the apostrophe for you. Great!

But a few other words aren’t so easy. If you type were, did you mean we’re? If you type ill, did you mean I’ll? If you type hell, did you mean he’ll? About half of the time, the phone makes the wrong guess.

At least you know when it’s about to guess wrong, thanks to the little preview bubble. If you want a contraction and the phone doesn’t realize it, type the last letter twice.

For instance, if you want we’re but the phone thinks you want were, type an extra e, like this: weree. The phone types we’re.

And it works with I’ll and she’ ll and he’ ll and we’ll, too. Type an extra l at the end to force the phone to create the contraction. (It doesn’t work the other way. If you don’t want the apostrophe but the phone thinks you do, you’ll have to tap the suggestion bubble to reject it.)

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Adapted from Pogue’s Basics, Flatiron Books. Order here.