possessive adjectives and possessive pronouns
Possessive adjectives and possessive pronouns can easily be confused. But don’t worry, they are easy to use!
Let’s take a look…
What’s the difference?
POSSESSIVE ADJECTIVES tell us WHO something belongs to.
Grammatical structure: possessive adjective + noun phrase
This phone is my phone.
Is Gloria your older sister?
Cleaning these tables is his job.
I don’t like her t-shirt.
I bought this new perfume. Its smell is absolutely lovely.
Welcome to our home.
Mr. and Mrs. Cole let me use their car.
POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS also tell us WHO something belongs to.
A possessive pronoun replaces the possessive adjective + noun phrase:
This phone is my phone mine.
My birthday is on the 22nd of February. When is your birthday yours?
I think that car is his car his.
Miranda’s report wasn’t very good, but Jane’s report – her report – hers was excellent.
Teacher: Good job Team A. I really like your ideas.
Team A: Thank you!
Team B: What about our ideas ours?
Teacher: Your ideas Yours is also very clever.
I think this car is their car theirs.
If possessive adjectives and possessive pronouns say the same thing, how do I choose which one to use?
1)Use a possessive pronoun, when something is obvious.
I think this bag is his.
We don’t need to repeat ‘bag’. It’s obvious we are speaking about a bag.
Remember! HIS is both a possessive adjective and a possessive pronoun.
2)Use a possessive adjective, when something is not obvious.
I like yours.
‘Your’ what? There isn’t enough information. Your bag, your hair, your smile? I don’t know what you like.
I like your handwriting.
Okay, now it’s clear.
3)Use a possessive pronoun to avoid repetition.
unnatural/too repetitive:
I really like your tattoo. Unfortunately, I got my tattoo when I was 16 so I really regret it now. When did you get your tattoo?
☑ natural/not repetitive:
I really like your tattoo. Unfortunately, I got mine when I was 16 so I really regret it now. When did you get yours?
4)Be careful using possessive pronouns when referring to people.
Correct: Hey Jim, is this your mum?
Incorrect: Hey Jim, is this yours?
We cannot use ‘yours’ here because:
A – We don’t know what ‘yours’ is referring to without more context.
B – When we speak about people, ‘yours’ is a bit impersonal.
However it IS possible in certain situations.
Imagine a group of mums are having tea together. A baby starts crying.
A: Is that my son?
B: Nope, it’s mine. He’s probably hungry.
5)ITS is not often used as a possessive pronoun.
It is more commonly used as a possessive adjective only.
