Apostrophes in Poems and Songs

Level 6

In a poem or song you may see 't for et, z' for ze, or an apostrophe inside a word. The apostrophe shows that a sound was left out to fit the rhythm.

How It Works

1. What you may see
To save a syllable, a line of verse can drop a vowel and write an apostrophe in its place:

  • 't for et: 't war eng kal Nuecht am Mäerz.
  • z' for ze before a vowel: Mir hu vill z'erzielen.

Poets can also leave out a letter inside a word. The official spelling rules quote Michel Rodange's Renert, where the line se heesche Bier'n a Bounen drops an e so that the line has the right number of syllables.

2. Standard spelling
In ordinary texts, write the full forms: Et war eng kal Nuecht am Mäerz. Informal messages sometimes use 't too: see informal short forms 't and z'.

3. Where no apostrophe belongs

  • The n dropped by the n-rule is never marked: Mir komme muer.
  • The short forms lo, sou, raus, rëm, wech are written without an apostrophe: see short forms without e.

Examples (4)

  1. 't war eng kal Nuecht am Mäerz.

    It was a cold night in March.

    Poetic: 't stands for et.

  2. Et war eng kal Nuecht am Mäerz.

    It was a cold night in March.

    The same line in standard spelling.

  3. Mir hu vill z'erzielen.

    We have a lot to tell.

    In poems and informal writing, z' can stand for ze before a vowel. Standard spelling writes vill ze erzielen.

  4. Mir sangen, bis 't Dag gëtt.

    We sing until day breaks.

    Standard: bis et Dag gëtt.

Common Mistakes

  • Marking the dropped n of the n-rule with an apostrophe.

    Mir komme' muer.
    Mir komme muer.

    The n-rule is part of normal spelling. The shorter form is simply written without the n.

  • Adding an apostrophe to the short form lo.

    Ech si 'lo doheem.
    Ech si lo doheem.

    Lo is an accepted short form of elo and is written without an apostrophe.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Apostrophes in Poems and SongsLevel 6

Learn This First

Before Apostrophes in Poems and Songs, learn Informal Short Forms: 't and z' and Short Forms Without the First E.

Words in This Pattern