Possessive adjectives/pronouns

4.1 Possessive adjectives/pronouns express possession. Possessive adjectives go before nouns, whereas possessive pronouns do not go before nouns.

This is my diary. It's mine.

Sometimes p. pronouns go at the beginning of a sentence. Theirs is the blue car.

4.2 We use the rather than a + possessive adjective with parts of the body after prepositions. Verbs used in this pattern include:

hit, kiss, punch, slap, bite, touch, pat, sting etc.

She kissed the baby on the cheek. He punched me on the nose.

4.3 Own is used with possessive adjectives to emphasize the fact that something belongs to one person and no one else.       

She's got her own chauffeur, or She's got a chauffeur of her own.

4.4 We also use my own/your own, etc to emphasize that one person does something instead of somebody else doing it for them.               

Clean your room.   Clean your own room! I'm not going to do it for you.

4.5 On my own/on your own can mean 'alone' or 'without help'. 

I don’t live on my own; I share a flat with two friends.

I can't move this table on my own. It's too heavy.

 

Possessive case with 's or s' for people or animals

1) Singular nouns (person or animal) + 's

the boy's racket, the dog's ears, the queen's limousine

2)  Regular plural nouns + '                      the passengers' luggage

3) Irregular plural nouns not ending in s + 's    

the children's toys, the women's magazines

4) Compound nouns + 's                          my sister-in-law's house  

5) `s after the last of two or more names to show common possession       

Kate and Alan's yacht, Sue and Andy’s daughter, Ann and Peter’ duet………

6) 's after each name to show individual possession      

Sonia's and Marisa's yachts (Each owns a yacht.)

 

6. Possessive case with " of" for inanimate things

6.1  of + inanimate things or abstract nouns

the windows of a house, the price of success

6.2  of + possessive case/possessive pronouns when there is a determiner (this, some etc) before the noun.

Listen to this song of Eric's, (one of Eric's songs),

a friend of mine (one of my friends)

6.3  phrases of place + 's (at the dentist's, the building's entrance), time or distance expressions + 's/' (last year's reports, two days' work, a mile's walk).

6.4  We can use either 's or of when we talk about places or organizations. (York's monuments or the monuments of York).

6.5 We use of with people in longer phrases. (That's the sister of one of my colleagues.)

7. Reflexive/Emphatic Pronouns (myself, yourself etc)

7.1 Reflexive pronouns are used after certain verbs (behave, burn, cut, enjoy, hurt, kill, look at, laugh at, introduce, dry, teach etc) when the subject and the object of the verb are the same.

Did you enjoy yourself? He taught himself how to drive.

7.2 Reflexive pronouns can be used after be, feel, look, seem to describe emotions or states.

He doesn't seem himself these days.

They are also used after prepositions but not after prepositions of place.

He is so proud of himself, but: He looked behind him.

7.3 Certain verbs do not normally take a reflexive pronoun: wash, shave, (un)dress, afford, complain, concentrate, meet, rest, relax, stand up, get up, sit down, wake up etc. He got up and shaved.

We can use a reflexive pronoun with wash or dress when we talk about young children or animals. I'm teaching my son how to wash himself. Those monkeys are dressing themselves!

 

Emphatic pronouns

  Emphatic pronouns have the same form as reflexive pronouns but a different meaning. They emphasize the noun, or the fact that one person, and not another, performs an action.

He himself painted the house.

They also mean " without help". She fixed the tire herself, (without help)

They go after nouns, pronouns or after " but" and " than".

She'd like to marry someone older than herself.

 

 

8.1  There are some idioms:

Enjoy yourself! (= Have a good time! ) Behave yourself! (= Be good! )

Make yourself at home! (= Feel comfortable.)

I like being by myself. (= I like being alone.)   

She lives by herself. (= She lives on her own.)

Do it yourself. (= Do it without being helped.)

Make yourself understood. (= Make your meaning clear.)

Help yourself to the cake. (= You're welcome to take a piece cake if you want).

By myself, by yourself, by himself (= on my own, on your own, on his own)

 

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