Tagged Questions

2
votes
1answer
61 views

Job title + possessive case [duplicate]

Is the following construct (grammatically) correct? Swiss mathematician and physicist Leonhard Euler's contribution to number theory was [...] It sounds clumsy to me; however, this rewrite sounds ...
-1
votes
1answer
219 views

Apostrophes and s's [duplicate]

I always forget the rule about if something is possessive put 's at the end, for example "the sailor's hat". I know some people say to remember because it has a different meaning if it's plural (e.g. ...
0
votes
0answers
22 views

possessive adjective + gerund vs. object pronoun + gerund [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: When is a gerund supposed to be preceded by a possessive pronoun? What is the difference between: [possessive adjective + gerund] and [object pronoun + gerund] ...
0
votes
3answers
175 views

Explaining the apostrophe in this quotation [closed]

Stumbled upon The Case For Mitt Romney: So far, under Obama, private sector job growth has vastly outpaced the public sector. And the big public unions, like the teachers', have been directly ...
4
votes
3answers
221 views

When is it appropriate to use 'the' instead of a possessive determiner?

I was with someone today and we were talking about a woman, and she said: "Wow, the husband must be so proud." I was confused as to which was correct or more appropriate as opposed to: "Wow, ...
0
votes
0answers
52 views

How do I express possession of an item owned by enumerated groups of several individuals? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: “Nikki's and Alice's X” vs. “Nikki and Alice's X” Preferred way to apostrophise in case of dual or multiple ownership by distinct ...
18
votes
2answers
355 views

Pronunciation of 'host' in Shakespeare's time

Listening to the recent film production of Macbeth with Patrick Stewart, I noticed that Duncan says: Give me your hand. Conduct me to mine host. Obviously, it's in the text (Act 1, Scene 6). ...
2
votes
2answers
114 views

Unions' Assassins' Guild or Union's Assassins' Guild?

Is it Unions' Assassins' Guild or Union's Assassins' Guild? If my English serves me, I think both are right but have slightly different meanings. Can someone shed some light?
3
votes
0answers
78 views

How to use “my” correctly in a plural possessive? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: Is “my wife and I's” correct, or should it be “my wife's and my”? Are the following sentences grammatically correct? If not, how should I ...
10
votes
2answers
5k views

How do you make the possessive form with “He and I”-style subjects?

Despite being a native speaker of American English, I cannot find a construction that sounds natural when trying to form a possessive from coordinated subjects including a first person pronoun, like ...
2
votes
1answer
190 views

Add one more level of indirection in ownership description: “Peter teacher's car”?

If I want to describe a car owned by Peter, I will say "Peter's car". But how do I describe the car his teacher owns? "Peter teacher's car" or do I have to be descriptive: "the car of Peter's ...
2
votes
1answer
281 views

Possessive form in alternate names or other extra clarifying sentences?

Suppose I'd like to refer to a car owned by my neighbor. I write this as "That's Mr. Johnson's (my neighbors) car". Should I write the extra "my neighbor" in it's genitive form? Sorry if the title ...
2
votes
3answers
607 views

Is it “consumer savings” or “consumers’ savings”?

In the previous year, consumers' savings had decreased. or In the previous year, consumer savings had decreased. Which one is valid and why?
5
votes
1answer
222 views

What is the possessive for several names?

If Alice and Bob each has a house, are these "Alice and Bob's houses" or "Alice's and Bob's houses"? Does that change anything if each of the houses belongs to both of them?
1
vote
1answer
217 views

Best link to forward to juniors re: correct use of apostrophes, possessives and contractions

I'm tired of my junior employees abusing, misusing and otherwise being cavalier about possessives and the use of apostrophes. I could wag my finger at them, point them to some Guide of Style or to any ...
4
votes
2answers
1k views

How do I correctly use the possessive apostrophe with a parenthetical citation?

Is the apostrophe in the right place in the following sentence? Pendleton, et al. (2002)’s research implies that extension of treatment allows for greater weight loss.
0
votes
2answers
293 views

About possessive apostrophe usage! [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: What is the correct possessive for nouns ending in s? Hello! New to English, but doing fairly fine so far... well, here's a situation I had a couple times, and... well, ...
8
votes
2answers
8k views

Possessive and plural of “Series”

I'm looking at the financial definition of series: a group of stocks or options that have common characteristics. Source How would I form the possessive and plural of this term? I'm guessing it is ...
7
votes
4answers
1k views

Why use “his” in association with the word “mankind”?

I have a doubt. The economist Keynes in a book wrote: The power to become habituated to his surroundings is a marked characteristic of mankind. I would have used "its" instead but since English ...
6
votes
2answers
859 views

“You” or “your” when using two subjects with a possession?

I came across your and Mr X's publication or I came across you and Mr X's publication
8
votes
2answers
413 views

*all of us's friend

There's this funny gap I tried to write a paper once upon a time when I studied linguistics, and I'd like to know if anyone has insight into it. The construction in question is the possessive ...
4
votes
4answers
378 views

Are there cases where a possessive pronoun is omitted?

Are there cases where the possessive adjective is omitted in a sentence, or is it always used? For example, in a sentence like "Susan was walking with her hands in her pockets", is it necessary to ...
14
votes
2answers
423 views

What is the correct spelling of “buyer* remorse”?

Apostrophical query: a) Buyers Remorse b) Buyer Remorse c) Buyer's Remorse d) Buyers' Remorse My guess is b or c, as it seems like any example is talking about the remorse of one specific buyer, ...