I am a native speaker of AmE. I understand when and where to use their vs theirs, etc. etc. (i.e. Don’t migrate this to ELL!). I’ve searched the site and google, and I have not quite seen an answer to my question. Etymonline describes the word theirs as: possessive pronoun, "their own," early 14c., from … Read more
Is there a good way to indicate that something belongs to you and another person when you want to mention the other person by name? As an example, suppose some friends ask you “Where’s the party at?” and the party is at the house that you and Bob share. Then The party’s at our house. … Read more
I’m having a hard time finding out what the grammar is when we want to use “or” and possessive. If, for example, I want to refer to the information of a person or an organization, do I say, “that person or organization’s information,” or, “that person’s or organization’s information.” Example: Please collect that person or … Read more
When specifying possession, my understanding is that one adds an apostrophe if modifying a plural ending with an ‘s’, or adds apostrophe followed by an s if not. How does one specify possession of one of a group? For example, when discussing a ball belonging to a friend of mine, should I assume ‘friends’ is … Read more
Which is correct? a) There is no consensus about the definition of chronic brain damage. b) There is no consensus about chronic brain damage definition. How many words could be placed in a row without using “of”? Answer The sentence a) is much easier to understand as it is written in a more typical, commonly … Read more
The sentence is as follows: The association “Association Name” requirements. Where should I put the possessive apostrophe? The association “Association Name”‘s requirements. OR The association’s “Association Name” requirements. Answer No matter where you put the apostrophe in that example it’s going to look strange to some people—regardless of whether or not it’s considered correct. In … Read more
“Ye” is an archaic pronoun that is a plural form of “you”. The possessive form of “you” is “your”. The possessive form of “thou” is “thy” (or “thine” before an adjective). What is the possessive form of “ye”? Is it just “your”? Answer In Early Modern English, the nominative (subject) form of the second person … Read more
Is this true? Not sure if Signup up is a gerund And if so does it need to modified by a possessive? It doesn’t sound right to me with “your” Answer Gerunds function like a noun while looking like a present participle. And we already know possessive pronouns (your, my, etc) can be followed by … Read more
In the following phrase, should the word “interests” have an apostrophe? We favor inter-agency collaboration in order to ensure that our clients’ interests’ triumph. I have been unable to convince myself either way. Any guidance, especially in a formal academic sense, would be greatly appreciated. Answer No apostrophe is needed. “Interests” is the subject of … Read more
Where should the commas be in this sentence? That was his sister Lucy’s pet hamster. Should there be a pair of commas surrounding ‘Lucy’s’? The possessive is throwing me off. Thanks 🙂 Answer The sentence as written is perfectly fine. That was his sister Lucy’s pet hamster. Most style guides will suggest that you use … Read more
