Merriam-Webster's Collegiate® Dictionary, 11th Edition
APOSTROPHE
I. noun
Etymology: Latin, from Greek apostrophē, literally, act of turning away, from apostrephein to turn away, from apo- + strephein to turn
Date: 1533
the addressing of a usually absent person or a usually personified thing rhetorically , apostrophic adjective
II. noun
Etymology: French & Late Latin; French, from Late Latin apostrophus, from Greek apostrophos, from apostrophos turned away, from apostrephein
Date: 1727
a mark ' used to indicate the omission of letters or figures, the possessive case, or the plural of letters or figures, apostrophic adjective