possessive pronouns

Meanings

1. 1nounpluraltechnical

   Words such as mine, yours, his, hers, ours and theirs that replace a noun phrase to show who owns something.

   Grammar: Plural term; the singular is possessive pronoun. They stand in place of a noun.

   Patterns

   • use possessive pronouns instead of nouns

   In the sentence this seat is mine, the word mine is a possessive pronoun.

   Possessive pronouns never take an apostrophe, so write theirs, not their's.

   Learners often mix up possessive pronouns with possessive adjectives such as my and your.

2. 2nounpluraltechnical

   As a classroom topic, the set of forms that avoid repeating a noun, as in that coat is yours rather than that coat is your coat.

   Grammar: Usually named in lessons on pronouns.

   Patterns

   • a lesson on possessive pronouns

   Our lesson today covers possessive pronouns.

   The worksheet asked students to replace each noun with possessive pronouns.

   Possessive pronouns make your writing less repetitive.

Word forms

Common combinations

use possessive pronouns

Use possessive pronouns to avoid repeating a noun.

list of possessive pronouns

The list of possessive pronouns is short.

possessive pronouns and adjectives

Possessive pronouns and adjectives are often confused.

teach possessive pronouns

She teaches possessive pronouns in her class.

Synonyms and how they differ

possessive adjectives

Possessive adjectives such as my and your sit before a noun, while possessive pronouns stand alone.

genitive pronouns

Genitive pronouns is the more traditional, mostly linguistic name for the same group, rarely used in school.

Word family

possessive adjective

showing ownership

possession noun

something owned or the state of owning

possess verb

to own or have

pronoun noun

a word that stands in for a noun

Commonly confused: possessive pronouns or contractions?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “possessive pronouns”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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