How to express possession in English

1. EXPRESSION OF POSSESSIONIN ENGLISH

2. ✘Waysofexpressing possession:
-Saxongenitive
- -ofconstruction
-Possessive adjectives
-Possessive pronouns

3. SAXON GENITIVE
✘Weuseit in thefollowing cases:
Personalnames:Churchill’sstatue.
Personalnouns:thegirl’s dress.
Collective nouns:thepolice’sdepartment.
Higher animals:animalsthatsharemorecharacteristicswith humans:theelephant’stale.
FORM: possessor (singular or plural) + ‘s+ person or thing possessed
Examples: Mary’s sister / my friend’s house

4. SAXON GENITIVE
✘Weuseit in thefollowing cases:
Geographical names, institutional names and nouns referring to regions: Europe’s stability, the hotel’s
entrance.
Nounsreferringtotime:aweek’sholiday.
Nounsofspecial interesttohumanactivity:thepoll’sresults

5. - OF CONSTRUCTION
✘Weuseit in thefollowing cases:
Inanimatepossessors:thewallsoftheroom.
Whenthepossessorisfollowedbya phrase:thedirectionsof amanwitha whistle.
Withexpressionsofmeasure:alitreofwater
In newspaperheadlines
FORM: person or thing possessed + of + possessor
Examples: the keys of the car / the roof of the shop

6. POSSESSIVEADJECTIVES
PERSONALPRONOUNS POSSESSIVEADJECTIVE
I MY (mío)
YOU YOUR
HE HIS
SHE HER
IT ITS
WE OUR
YOU YOUR
THEY THEIR
•They arealwaysfollowedbya noun.Example: My car isred
Myisred

7. POSSESSIVEPRONOUNS
PERSONALPRONOUNS POSSESSIVEPRONOUN
I MINE
YOU YOURS
HE HIS
SHE HERS
IT ITS
WE OURS
YOU YOURS
THEY THEIRS
•They aresubstituteanoun.Example: Thatcarismine
= mycar