The term guest’s is a standard singular possessive form for the term Guest. Use is when you are referring to something that belongs to one guest e.g., “The guest’s belongings were found in the lobby.” Furthermore, “guests’” is a plural possessive for the term guest. Use it when you are talking about something that belongs to more than one guest e.g., “The guests’ names are written on the seating chart.
“Guest” is the standard singular form and does not indicate possession or ownership but can be used as an adjective together with a verb e.g “Guest requests are taken very seriously”
Let’s look at some of the different forms of the term guests and their different examples.
| Form | Example |
| Singular | Guest |
| Plural | Guests |
| Singular possessive | Guest’s |
| Plural Possessive | Guests’ |
Singular: Listen to what the guest says for improvement.
Plural: We have invited several guests to the event.
Singular possessive: Make a welcome basket for the guest’s arrival.
Plural Possessive: We need to accommodate the guests’ dietary restrictions.
The term guest is the standard form. It can also be used as an adjective which is often confused with its possessive forms.
Example: “We may turn off the air conditioners upon guest request”
However, on its own alone, it’s neither a singular nor a plural possessive form. Let’s look at more of the examples on the other forms so you wont make a mistake using them in future..
Guests
This is the standard plural for the term guest. Use it when you are referring to more than one guest.
- Pay close attention to the guests for any suggestions or feedback they might have
Guest’s
Guest’s is the singular possessive form for the term guest. Use it when you are talking about something that belongs to one guest.
- The guest’s flight got delayed
- The guest’s room key is at the front desk.
- Hotel staff made sure the guest’s stay was comfy.
Guests’
This is the standard plural possessive form for the term guests. It indicates that something belongs to more than one guest.
- The guests’ room keys are ready for pick-up at the front desk.
- Take the guests’ bags to their respective rooms on different floors.
Which one is correct to say “ the guest request” or “the guest request?”
Both are correct but there is a difference in meaning depending on the context.
When we say “the guest’s request” with a possessive form, it means the request belongs to a specific guest, probably the one we’re talking about. If there are many guests, it becomes “the guests’ request.”
In the phrase “guest request,” the word “guest” is like an adjective describing the type of request.
The word “the” suggests a specific request, but the adjective “guest” doesn’t tell us which guest. It could mean a request made by a guest, requests made by guests, a request for guests, something on behalf of guests, or something related to guests in general.