The word doctor’s is the singular possessive of doctor. E.g., “The doctor’s diagnosis was accurate.” Furthermore, the word doctors’ is the plural possessive form. E.g., “The doctors’ meeting will start soon.” Also, doctors is the regular plural form.
Possessives and Plural Forms of the Word Doctor
| Form | Example |
| Singular | Doctor |
| Plural | Doctors |
| Singular possessive | Doctor’s |
| Plural possessive | Doctors’ |
You make the singular possessive by adding an apostrophe and an “s.” In comparison, for the plural possessive, you just add an apostrophe to doctors.
Examples
Singular: The doctor must sign the prescription form.
Plural: The hospital has many skilled doctors.
Singular possessive: The doctor’s office is on the second floor.
Plural possessive: The doctors’ lounge is a private area.
Using the wrong form of the word doctor in your writing will make it look bad. Therefore, you should read the rest of this article so you can learn more about the different forms and how to use them.
Doctor’s
The word doctor’s is the singular possessive form of doctor. Therefore, you can use it to say something belongs to one doctor.
The things you refer to a doctor owning can be both physical and non-physical.
As shown in these two examples:
- The doctor’s medical bag was always ready for emergencies.
- The doctor’s expertise was invaluable to the team.
- The doctor’s office was filled with nervous patients waiting for news.
- Her doctor’s appointment was scheduled for 2 PM.
In both instances, we are referring to just one doctor possessing something.
Doctors’
The word doctors’ is the plural possessive form of doctor. Therefore, you use it when you want to say that more than one doctor owns or possesses something.
You form the plural possessive by adding the apostrophe to the end of the plural word doctors.
- The doctors’ opinions on the case were divided.
- The doctors’ strike lasted for several weeks.
- The doctors’ lounge was a quiet refuge from the bustling hospital.
- The doctors’ research led to a breakthrough in cancer treatment
Doctors
The word doctors is the regular plural form of the word doctor. That means you should use it to mention a plural quantity of doctors when the sentence is not possessive.
With the word doctors, you can refer to a set number of doctors, as in these examples:
- All three doctors agreed on the diagnosis.
- There are over a hundred doctors in the hospital.
- The hospital employed 50 doctors with different specialties.
Alternatively, you can use it to refer to all doctors.
- Doctors often work long hours to save lives.
- All the doctors in the hospital were on high alert during the emergency.
- The team of doctors worked together to solve the medical mystery.
