Home » Parts of Speech » Possession » Possessives-’s
To show possession in English the structure we use is:
1. add 's to a singular noun or name. For example: The girl’s house. (One girl)
2. add ' to a plural noun. For example: The girls’ house. (two or more girls)
The –‘s structure does not change if there is more than one house. The structure is influenced by the possessor and not the possessed.
|
One Person |
More than one person |
One House |
The girl’s house |
The girls’ house |
More than one house |
The girl’s houses |
The girls’ houses |
We very often use possessive 's with names. When a name ends in s, we usually treat it like any other singular noun, and add 's:
For example: This is Charles's chair.
But it is possible (especially with older, classical names) to just add ' :
For example: What was Dickens' first book?
We do not use the possessive ‘s structure when talking about:
1. Things: The window of the house NOT The house’s window.
2. Abstract Concepts: The meaning of life NOT The life’s meaning.
Click on this link to learn about Possession
Possessive Pronouns and Adjectives