Possessive Nouns for beginners

Possessive structures have many functions like showing ownership or belonging. With the help of apostrophe 's', we can make a possessive noun. Let's start!

"Possessive Nouns" in English Grammar

What Are Possessive Nouns?

When we want to talk about something that belongs to somebody, we use possessive nouns.
We use apostrophe s (’s) to show that something belongs to someone or something.

Mike has a car. The car belongs to Mike. This is Mike's car.
Kara has a doll. The doll belongs to Kara. This is Kara's doll.

First we say the owner's name, then we add the 's and lastly we add the name of the thing.

Sam's car is fancy.

Here, it means that Sam has a car.

Hanna's cat is cute.

Here, it shows that Hannah has a pet cat.

Forming Possessive Nouns

'Possessive nouns' are formed by adding an 's to the noun which is the owner of something. Remember there is always a noun after 's. For example:

Peter's sister is tall.

My father's car is black.

using 's to show possession

Warning

'S can be added to both proper and common nouns. Here are some examples:

Kylie's friend is a singer.

His friend's hand is hurt.

Talking about Family Relationships

'S' does not only show possession, it can also be used to show relationships. Look at the examples below:

Nina's grandmother is too kind.

Peter's father is a dentist.

Possession with Singular and Plural Nouns

We use (’s) after a singular noun and ’ after a plural noun.

Singular Nouns Plural Nouns
The boy's car The boys' car
My dad's house My parents' house

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