Why "Mother's Day" not "Mothers' Day"?

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NewTime
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10 May 2020, 7:42 pm

Shouldn't it be spelled "Mothers' Day" because it is a day for all mothers, not just one mother? Same with "Father's Day".



nick007
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11 May 2020, 10:46 am

It is a day for all mothers but it's for people to honor their own mother.


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IsabellaLinton
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11 May 2020, 10:54 am

I spell it Mothers' Day / Fathers' Day, and always wondered the same thing.


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HeroOfHyrule
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11 May 2020, 1:19 pm

I never noticed this before, so now seeing "Mother's Day" is going to irk me.

nick007 wrote:
It is a day for all mothers but it's for people to honor their own mother.


This does make sense and justifies the spelling, though.



naturalplastic
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11 May 2020, 2:10 pm

Makes sense either way.

You could think of it as "the day that you honor the individual who is your own mom" (singular), or you could think of it as the day that "all mothers get honored" (plural).