Possessives

• Standing alone: "hers". Possessive pronouns never take an apostrophe.
• Plural possessive: apostrophe after the -s: "my parents' car".
• The double-possessive pattern is "a friend of mine/yours/hers".
• Objects usually take "of": "the legs of the table" (not "the table's legs" in careful style).
• Asking about possession: "Whose + noun + is this?"
• Possessive "its" has no apostrophe. "It's" = "it is".

• That's not my umbrella, it's hers.
• This is my parents' car.
• A friend of mine called yesterday.
• The legs of the table are wobbly.
• Whose jacket is this.
• The dog wagged its tail.

Pick an answer to see the rule behind it.

More in Pronouns & Possession

• Reflexive pronouns
• one & ones