When scheduling your annual physical, you might wonder: is it a “doctor’s appointment” or a “doctor appointment”? If you lean towards “doctor’s appointment,” you’re in good company. It’s the more common phrasing among English speakers. But does that mean “doctor appointment” is wrong? Not necessarily.
The preference for “doctor’s appointment” boils down to linguistic convention, but the grammatical nuances behind both phrases are quite interesting. Let’s delve into why both are acceptable, yet one is favored over the other.
Deciphering the ‘s’: Possession and Beyond
The apostrophe-s (‘s) in English often signals possession, like in “the dog’s bone.” While other ways to indicate possession exist (e.g., “the bone of the dog”), ‘s is the most frequent and straightforward method.
However, the function of ‘s extends beyond simple possession. Though debated by some, it can mark plurals (think “p’s and q’s”) or contractions (like let’s for “let us”). Crucially, there’s another role that sometimes gets overlooked, one that’s key to understanding “doctor’s appointment.”
Consider “the bird’s song.” The song isn’t owned by the bird in the same way a bone is owned by a dog. Instead, the song originates from the bird. Here, ‘s indicates a genitive relationship, specifically the genitive of origin, rather than strict possession.
Unpacking the Genitive Case
The term “genitive case” might sound technical, but it’s a fundamental grammatical concept. In essence, the genitive case (often called possessive in modern English due to historical simplification) points to a relationship of ownership, control, or association between things.
Think of it as indicating not just possession, but also origin, description, or type. While “possessive case” became the dominant term thanks to influential grammarians, “genitive case” more broadly captures these varied relationships. For our discussion, “genitive case” helps clarify the nuances of “doctor’s appointment.”
Within the genitive case, we find categories like the “genitive of origin” (as in “bird’s song”) and, importantly for our query, the “descriptive genitive.” Grammar experts Patricia T. O’Conner and Stewart Kellerman at Grammarphobia aptly identify “doctor’s appointment” as an example of the descriptive genitive.
They explain the difference between “doctor’s appointment” and “doctor appointment” this way:
In the phrase “doctor’s appointment,” the noun “doctor” is being used genitively to describe the type of appointment, while in “doctor appointment,” the noun is being used attributively (that is, adjectivally) to do the same thing.
The term “doctor’s” in the first example is often called a “descriptive genitive,” and “doctor” in the second an “attributive noun,” a “noun adjunct,” or a “noun premodifier.”
Essentially, “doctor’s” in “doctor’s appointment” acts genitively, describing the kind of appointment. Conversely, “doctor” in “doctor appointment” functions attributively, acting like an adjective to modify “appointment.”
There’s no rigid rule dictating when to use a genitive noun versus an attributive noun as a modifier. Language often relies on what sounds natural and idiomatic to native speakers.
And that’s precisely what we see here. Both “doctor’s appointment” and “doctor appointment” are grammatically sound. The preference for “doctor’s appointment,” which became noticeable in the latter half of the 20th century as these phrases gained common usage, seems to be largely a matter of linguistic convention. It simply became the more accepted and natural-sounding way to refer to a scheduled meeting with a physician.
In conclusion, while you won’t be grammatically incorrect saying “doctor appointment,” “doctor’s appointment” aligns more closely with established English usage and is the idiomatically preferred choice. Both phrases effectively communicate the same meaning, but understanding the subtle grammar behind them enriches our appreciation for the English language.
