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Possessives
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Singular
Nouns
(even if the meaning is plural
or if there are several
words)
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Rule:
Add 's after the possessor
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Example:
* Tom's car
* the children's toys
* the Queen of England's jewels
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Plural Nouns
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Rule :
Add ' after the plural 's'.
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Example:
* my parents' car
* my neighbours' dog
* my grandparents' house |
Names ending
in 's'
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Rule :
Add 's after the last s.
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Example :
Denis's wife
Gladys's job |
Double
Possessive
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Rule :
Add 's after the possessor's name,
or use a possessive pronoun.
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Example :
* A friend of my father's
(=one of my father's friends,
not the only one)
*
A friend of
mine/his/hers/ours/yours/theirs
*
A friend of Julie's |
Shops & people's homes
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Often take the possessive.
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Example :
At the hairdresser's
At the dentist's
At the Watson's
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N.B. :
The apostrophe followed
by s: (for example:
Tom's), to denote possession, is used for
:
◊ living things
(humans and animals) :
John's car, the cat's
milk, the dog's tail, but... the door of the car
◊ groups & institutions :
the government's proposals, the
company's policy
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