Because who’s and whose are homophones people often use them interchangeably. However, these words have different meanings and one cannot be used in place of the other.

Who’s is the shortened form, or contraction, of the phrase “who is” or “who has.”

Who’s that person standing in your driveway?

Rachel is the tutor who’s (who is) graduating in May.

Whose is the possessive form of the relative pronoun “who.” “Whose” refers to the person or people a particular thing belongs to.

Whose sweater is hanging on the chair?

I met a student whose apartment is in the same building as mine.

The easiest method for determining whether you should use who’s or whose is the “fill-in-the-blank” trick.

The example below illustrates how the “fill-in-the-blank” trick can be used.

Professor John Simons, who is/has conducted extensive genetics research in Rogers University labs, was able to determine that the DNA found at the crime scene was from a male of Eastern European descent.

Because the expression “who has” fits right into the example sentence, I now know that I can use “who’s” safely in its place. “Whose” would not be the correct choice here.

To see a flowchart which illustrates this “fill-in-the-blank” trick used to determine which form of who’s/whose to use in a sentence, click on the following link. http://www.uhv.edu/ac/student/writing/grammartip112806.pdf

Also note that whose is sometimes used instead of the phrases “of which” or “in which” to refer to ideas or things. (“Of which” and “in which” can be awkward and cause confusion.)

Franchised restaurants, the products of which are offered internationally, have an advantage in the food service market. (awkward)
Franchised restaurants, whose products are offered internationally, have an advantage in the food service market. (revised)

In summary, we now know that “who’s” is a contraction used in place of “who is” or "who has," while “whose” is a possessive form of the relative pronoun “who” that refers to the person/people a particular thing belongs to. Occasionally, “whose” may also be used in place of the phrase “in which” or “of which” to eliminate awkwardness. 

In addition to our website, we recommend the Fiction Factor’s “Heteronyms, Homonyms, Homographs and Homophones” page. This page features an explanation of heteronyms, homonyms, homographs and homophones and a list of over 500 different homophones that occur in the English language.

Test your understanding of the homophones who’s and whose by choosing the correct word in each of the following sentences.

1. William, (who’s, whose) car was stolen last month, has to walk to work every day.

2. (Who’s, Whose) camera is on the table?

3. I wonder (who’s, whose) dog that is running across the street.

4. (Who’s, whose) the one responsible for this mess?

5. Diane is the student (who’s, whose) traveling to China next year.

Answers

1. William, whose car was stolen last month, has to walk to work every day.

2. Whose camera is on the table?

3. I wonder whose dog that is running across the street.

4. Who’s the one responsible for this mess?

5. Diane is the student who’s traveling to China next year.

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.

Subscribe/Unsubscribe/View Archive