The possessive in English

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The possessive form in English is expressed through possessive adjectives and pronouns and the Saxon genitive or possessive construction. The latter is a construction unique to English, which does not exist in Spanish. In this article we briefly explain it and provide you with resources so you can master it well.

Possessive adjectives and pronouns

One way to express the possessive in English is using possessive adjectives and pronouns. In Spanish, they are practically identical and are distinguished by their position in the sentence and by the presence or absence of the noun. In English they are different.

We show you the table of possessive adjectives and pronouns in English along with some examples.

Owner	Adjective	Pronoun
1st singular person	my	*mine*
2nd singular person	*your*	*yours*
3rd singular masculine person	*his*	*his*
3rd singular feminine person	*her*	*hers*
3rd singular neutral person	*its*	*its*
1st plural person	*our*	*ours*
2nd plural person	*your*	*yours*
3rd plural person	*their*	*theirs*

Adjective	Pronoun
My	Mine
Your	Yours
His	His
Her	Hers
Its	Its
Our	Ours
Your	Yours
Their	Theirs

Examples

These are my keys. Those are yours. (These are my keys, those are yours).
Our house is quite small. Hers is big. (Our house is quite small, hers is big).
Our clothing is elegant and smart. Theirs is casual. (Our clothing is elegant, theirs is casual).

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The Saxon genitive or possessive noun

Another way to form the possessive in English is the Saxon genitive, also called the possessive apostrophe or possessive noun, which is used with nouns denoting people, animals, countries, expressions of time, and collective names of people and animals to establish a relationship of ownership or possession between it and a second noun.

It is formed by adding an apostrophe and “s” to the noun that owns the referred object.

Structure:

Noun + ‘s + Noun

Exceptions and specific cases

There are several specific cases when using the Saxon genitive. If you want to learn more about these exceptions, we suggest you take a look at our page about the Saxon genitive.

Exceptions:

The noun is plural or ends in s.
The noun is a proper name.
The noun is a compound noun.
Several owners.
The noun is a collective noun.

Examples

Robin’s car is green. (Carlos’s car is green).
My girlfriend’s coat is dark. (My girlfriend’s coat is dark).
The sailors’ boat. (The sailors’ boat).
Carlos’ new home is big. (Carlos’s new home is big).
Mr. Jones’ cat is very old. / Mr. Jones’s cat is very old. (Mr. Jones’s cat is very old.)
My brother-in-law’s cousin. (My brother-in-law’s cousin).
Mario and Susan’s children attend primary school. (Mario and Susan’s children attend primary school).
People’s rights. (People’s rights.)

Double Saxon genitive

The words in the sentence invert their order compared to Spanish. Example:

This is John’s mother’s car. (This is John’s mother’s car.)

When not to use the Saxon genitive?

There are cases when the Saxon genitive should not be used because the preposition of or a possessive adjective can be used instead.

When the relationship expressed is between persons and places.
When the owner’s name is followed by a clause.
With nouns denoting inanimate objects.

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Preposition of

The last way to form the possessive in English is with the preposition of which is used when the noun is an inanimate object.

Examples:

The color of the building is white. (The color of the building is white).
The moisture of the soil. (The moisture of the soil).
The person responsible for taking the flights. (The person responsible for booking the flights)

Possessive exercises in English

Test your knowledge about the possessive in English with the following practical exercises.

A/ Fill in the blank with the appropriate possessive pronoun according to the theory mentioned above:

My sister is great. _______ name is Paula. (My sister is wonderful. Her name is Paula.)
Paul is really excited. _______ birthday is really soon! (Paul is very excited. His birthday is very soon.)
My husband and I bought a house. It’s going to be ______ third one we live in. (My husband and I have bought a house. It will be the third one where we live.)
My cousins love cats. _______ parents love cats too, and they have a lot of them. (My cousins adore cats. Their parents also adore them, and they have many.)
Maria is going to England to visit ______ best friend. (Maria is going to England to visit her best friend.)
I hate it when my sister takes my clothes without my permission. They are ______! (I hate when my sister takes my clothes without my permission. They are mine!)
Fatima and Wendy miss _______ parents so much, they live across the country and they don’t see eachother much. (Fatima and Wendy miss their parents very much, they live across the country and don’t see each other often.)