省略的記號
這是那支小旗子最原始、最好懂的用途：標出被拿掉的東西。
apostrophe (omission) · noun · B2
The mark ( ' ) that you write to show that one or more letters or numbers have been left out of a word, as in don't (= do not) or '86 (= 1986).
撇號（省略）
核心畫面
You can think of it as one tiny raised mark ( ' ) that always means the same thing: something is missing here, or something belongs here. It is a small flag the writer plants above the line to say 'read this differently from the plain letters around it'.
一個浮在字母上方的小勾 ( ' )，它本身不發音、也不是字母，作用是替寫字的人「插一支小旗子」，提醒讀者這裡跟旁邊的…更多收起
一個浮在字母上方的小勾 ( ' )，它本身不發音、也不是字母，作用是替寫字的人「插一支小旗子」，提醒讀者這裡跟旁邊的字母要分開看。最原始的一種想法是：那支旗子在說「這裡有東西被拿掉了」——don't 裡的那一撇，站的正是 o 被拿走的位置。三個用法都是同一支小旗子，只是插的理由不同。Two branches
所屬與標示
同一支小旗子換個理由插：不是標出缺口，而是把後面的 s 跟前面的字切開，讓讀者知道這個 s 不是單字本身的一部分。
apostrophe (possession) · noun · B2
The same mark ( ' ) written before or after an s to show that something belongs to someone or something, or is connected with them, as in John's book, Charles' mother, or Henry's first year as a teacher.
撇號（所有格）
原始詞典資料3 筆記錄
以下是外部詞典記錄的用法，原文照列，我們還沒有寫成教學內容。上面的說明才是我們自己寫的；有些用法可能上面已經講過了。
apostrophenoun詞源 1/əˈpɒs.tɹə.fi/
- 1
communicationsjournalismliteratureThe text character ’, which serves as a punctuation mark in various languages and as a diacritical mark in certain rare contexts.
- Since its inception the apostrophe has been a controversial piece of punctuation.
apostrophenoun詞源 2/əˈpɒs.tɹə.fi/
- 1
A sudden exclamatory piece of dialogue addressed to someone or something, especially absent.
- Apostrophe a bold digression makes, Mov'd by some sudden thought the theme awakes.
- The warm apostrophe of Riccardini to this little representative of his parents, whom he called "the son of his love, the child of his old age, the gift of his beloved niece, on the behalf of his angel-daughter," affected them all;...
apostrophenoun詞源 3/əˈpɒs.tɹə.fi/
- 1
biologybotanynatural-sciencesAn arrangement of chlorophyll grains perpendicular to the outer surface of plant cells, as opposed to epistrophe (an arrangement on the outer surface).
- As is well known, chloroplast in the epistrophe position presents an oval or more or less circular form; in the apostrophe position a flattened and lenticular form.
資料來源：英文維基詞典 English Wiktionary（CC BY-SA 4.0）。 原文照列，未經改寫。