Possessive Nouns

Possessive nouns, also known as the possessive case, indicate ownership or belonging. The possessive form is used to show a relationship of possession between two nouns that refer to people, groups of people, countries, and animals.

How to Form the Possessive Case

Rule 1: We use the possessive ’s to express that something belongs to a person, animal, or country.

Note: We also use the possessive ’s if the noun already ends with s.

Rule 2: In the plural, we use the possessive ’s only with irregular plural forms.

Rule 3: In the plural regular forms that end with s, we only add an apostrophe.

Rule 4: We can use the possessive form with of mostly for inanimate objects.

Note: We can still use the possessive 's for inanimate objects if they have a clear connection to people.

Fixed Expressions

Rule 5: We use the possessive ’s in fixed time expressions. Here are some of the examples: