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Which is correct “Is that yours?” or “Is that your’s?”?

I ask because it is possessive, so I would think it would be the latter, but I typically use and see the former usage.

Are there particular cases in which one should be used instead of the other? Or is one simply correct and the other not?

This is one of the few things that still confuse me, so help is greatly appreciated.

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    There is no such word as ****your’s***.
    – tchrist ♦
    Commented Jun 23, 2013 at 17:14

1 Answer 1

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It would definitely, unequivocally, and undeniably be yours. Same with ours. No apostrophe needed, and if you put one in, dark things may happen.

From NOAD:

yours |yôrz; yoŏrz| possessive pronoun

1 used to refer to a thing or things belonging to or associated with the person or people that the speaker is addressing : the choice is yours | it's no business of yours.

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  • Thanks for the clarification there, it's just something that's always confused me and I always thought I was doing it correctly but never quite sure.
    – Andrew Marshall
    Commented Feb 22, 2011 at 2:14
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    @Andrew Marshall: One easy way to remember this is to keep in mind this fact: none of the possessive pronouns have an apostrophe. (my, your, his, her, its, our, their or mine, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs).
    – Kosmonaut
    Commented Feb 22, 2011 at 3:02
  • Dark things...?
    – pinkpanther
    Commented Sep 3, 2016 at 16:20
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    @pinkpanther: "Dark things" as in you may be marked off on schoolwork, or thought sub-literate by employers and associates.
    – Robusto
    Commented Sep 3, 2016 at 16:26
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    @Kosmonaut: More accurately, none of the definite possessive pronouns have an apostrophe. Indefinite possessive pronouns do: one's, someone's, somebody's, each other's, etc.
    – herisson
    Commented Nov 13, 2016 at 6:57

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