Possessive pronouns in English


We use possessive pronouns to show who owns something. Some possessive pronouns look like possessive adjectives, so you have to be careful when choosing the right word.  (Note: I'll also read this in today's blog entry.)

possessive adjectives: my, your, his, her, its, our, your, their

possessive pronouns: mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, yours, theirs

Other than the word "mine," possessive pronouns end in an "s."  However, possesive pronouns may be singular or plural within a sentence.

Example: My car is red, but hers is yellow. (Her car is yellow. She has one car.)

Example: Your answers are correct, but mine aren't. (My answers aren't correct. The word "mine" represents a plural word: answers.)

Example: Your family is on vacation, and so is theirs. (Their family is on vacation. The word "theirs" is a plural possessive pronoun, but it represents the word "family," which is singular.)

Try this exercise.

Directions: Choose the pronoun that fits each situation. Hints are provided at the end of each sentence or question:

mine     yours (singular or plural)   his     hers     its     ours     theirs

1. It that __________? (I'm talking to you.)

2. Her work is finished, but _________ isn't. (a man)

3. Our teacher is a man; _________ is a woman. (Someone is talking about other students who are not present)

4. Your order is ready; so is _________. (I'm talking about myself.)

5. Is this yours or __________? (a group of people)

6. Maria says that the books are __________. (a woman)

7. There are so many minivans in this parking lot, it's hard to tell which one is __________. (We're looking for a van that belongs to us.)

8. Hers is smaller than __________. (a man)

9. His is bigger than __________. (a woman)

10. His English is not as good as __________. (I'm talking to you.)
The answers are below.
The word of the day is "safe."

That's all for now. 

Have a good day!


 
Your teacher,

Paul

PEACE!

Answers:
1. yours
2. his
3. theirs
4. mine
5. theirs
6. hers
7. ours
8. his
9. hers
10. yours

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