Possessive Pronouns
From TEFL World Wiki
Possessive pronouns are pronouns used to show ownership. They tell us who owns what.
- mine (sth. belongs to me - I own it)
- yours (sth. belongs to you (singular) - you own it)
- his (sth. belongs to him - he owns it)
- hers (sth. belongs to her - she owns it)
- its (sth. belongs to it - it owns it)
- ours (sth. belongs to us - we own it)
- yours (sth. belongs to your (plural) - you own it)
- theirs (sth. belongs to them - they own it)
As with all pronouns, possessive pronouns replace a noun (the word pronoun comes from Latin and means in place of a noun). In fact, pronouns are used to avoid repetition.
This is my bag. That’s hers.
The possessive pronoun hers helps us avoid repeating the noun bag.
Its and It’s
Be careful here.
Its is a possessive pronoun used with things or animals, and generally to indicate neutral gender ownership.
It’s is a contraction for it is or it has.
Possessive Pronouns + Gerunds
Possessive pronouns can also be used with gerunds to clarify who is doing what.
Your rallying around that sick child inspired us all.
My snoring at night always wakes him up.
We had a lovely nanny. I particularly enjoyed her bedtime reading.
