Grammatically Correct 8/30/05
A weekly grammar tip created by Academic Center Peer Writing Tutors.
University of Houston-Victoria
3007 N. Ben Wilson
Victoria, TX 77901
Understanding Possessive Pronouns
by Shawn Brett

A possessive pronoun is a pronoun used to define who or what “owns” a particular object or person.

Usually when showing possession, it is necessary to add an apostrophe or an apostrophe and an ‘s’ to the end of a word.  This is not the case with possessive pronouns.  Possessive pronouns do not require any additional apostrophes under any circumstances.  Here is a list of independent and determinative possessive pronouns.

 

Person Independent Pronoun Determinative Pronoun
1st  singular  mine 

 my
1st  plural    ours our
2nd   yours  your
3rd  (male) his  his
3rd  (female) hers

her
3rd  (no gender) its its
3rd  plural theirs their

                                                                                             

The object that is being possessed/owned generally comes before the independent possessive pronoun.

Ex:  I wish that red car were mine.
Ex:  The last house on the left is ours.
Ex:  Is this shirt yours or his?
Ex:  Margie always thought those dishes were hers.
Ex:  Although the championship trophy is theirs this season, I doubt they will win it again next year.

There are also possessive pronouns that modify a noun.  In this case, the determinative possessive pronoun comes before the object.

Ex:  I wish that were my red car.
Ex:  That is our house on the left.
Ex:  Is this your shirt or his shirt?
Ex:  Margie always thought those were her dishes.
Ex:  Another team will win their trophy next season.

 
Definitions
 

Independent possessive pronoun (n)
A pronoun that can stand alone in a sentence.
 

Determinative possessive pronoun (n)
A pronoun that modifies a noun.

 
Recommended Grammar Website of the Week
by Shawn Brett

In addition to our own website, this week we recommend St. Cloud State University’s Literacy Education Online (LEO).  This website contains a large variety of information from writing papers to correcting grammar mistakes.  There are also sections focused on research and citations, including ways to “evaluate the validity of web documents” and “writing citations for online sources.”
Test Your Knowledge
by Shawn Brett

Test your understanding of possessive pronouns by correcting the following sentences if an error exists.

1. The television fell from its’ stand.

2. That boat is mine; I’ve owned it for several years.

3. You’re break will be over in about five minutes.

Answers

1.  The television fell from its stand.

2.  That boat is mine; I’ve owned it for several years. Correct.

3. Your break will be over in about five minutes.

 

Grammatically Correct is a grammar tip of the week created by Academic Center Peer Writing Tutors at the University of Houston-Victoria in Victoria, Texas.

Comments about this newsletter should be directed to Summer Leibensperger, leibenspergers@uhv.edu.

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