Hello reader! In this chapter, let us delve into the concept of possessive pronouns and possessive adjectives, their meanings, rules, and some examples related to them. Let’s get started!
We all know that a pronoun is any word that is used instead of a noun. A possessive pronoun is a form of the pronoun that denotes ownership of something in the sentence. For example,
- It is his car.
- That group invited me to their party.
It is interesting to note that possessive pronouns are also similar to possessive adjectives, which describe the possessions of a noun in the sentence. For example,
That car is mine / That is my car. (The word ‘mine’ is an adjective while ‘my’ is a pronoun).
Possessive Pronouns and Possessive Adjectives
A thin line of difference exists between possessive pronouns and possessive adjectives. The following are the differences between the two for the three persons of personal pronouns.
| Possessive Pronouns | Possessive Adjectives |
| My, Our | Mine, Ours |
| Your | Yours |
| His, Her, Its, Their | His, Hers, its, theirs |
Rule: A common confusion exists while writing the possessive pronoun. That is the presence of an apostrophe (‘) and s to the pronoun while describing the possessive case. However, while writing about the possession of any pronoun, ‘s should not be used. Let us see this example.
- The dress is her’s (Incorrect) /// The dress is hers (Correct).
- The box is missing it’s lid (Incorrect) /// The box is missing its lid (Correct).
- Is that pen your’s? (Incorrect) /// Is that pen yours? (Correct).
Difference between It’s and Its
Another area where many people make a mistake is between the use of it’s and Its. As discussed above, it’s is a contracted form of it is, and its is a possessive pronoun. For a clear explanation on this and for more examples, see this article on its vs it’s.
In the same manner,
- Their = Belonging to them /// They’re = they are
- Your = belonging to you /// You’re = You are
- Whose = Belonging to who /// Who’s = Who is
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