Struggling with apostrophes and ownership in grammar? Learn the formation of the possessive case with clear rules, practical examples, and expert tips – only on Selftution.com, the best educational website for simple, effective learning.

Welcome to Selftution.com – Where complex grammar becomes easy!

Formation of Possessive Case in English Grammar

The formation of the possessive case in English plays a key role in showing ownership or association. It’s a vital aspect of mastering English grammar.

When a noun or pronoun shows possession, it is said to be in the Possessive case or genitive case.

Interestingly, possessive cases aren’t limited to indicating possession – they can also express authorship, origin, type, and more, broadening their usage significantly.

In this post, we’ll explore the rules for the formation of the possessive case in English grammar with examples.

For other noun cases, check my post on Nominative and Accusative.

Formation of the Possessive Case in English Grammar with Examples

Let’s understand the formation of the possessive case with these two examples-

1. Shirly’s bag is on the table.
2. The dog bit the cat’s tail.

In sentence 1, Shirley’s bag means the bag possessed by Shirley or the bag belonging to Shirley.

In sentence 2, the cat’s tail means the tail belonging to the cat.

Here, the form of nouns Shirley and cat is changed to Shirley’s and cat’s to show possession or ownership. The (‘) used to show possession is called an apostrophe.

It is important to note here that to form a possessive case, we cannot simply add (-‘s) at the end of every noun. There are certain rules for the formation of a possessive or genitive case that depend on the state of a noun. Let’s understand these rules for the formation of a possessive case.

RULES FOR FORMATION OF POSSESSIVE OR GENITIVE CASE

Rule 1: Singular Noun

For a singular noun, to form a possessive case, we add (-‘s). Whereas, in the case of a singular noun that ends in (-s), we can add (-‘) or (-‘s), both are acceptable.

Formation of the Possessive Case for a Singular Noun with Examples

Rule 2: Plural Noun

For the formation of possessive cases with plural nouns that end in (-s), we add just an apostrophe (-‘) after (-s). That is, we do not add (-‘s); we use only (-‘). Whereas, in the case of plural nouns that do not end in (-s), we simply add (-‘s).

Formation of the Possessive Case for Plural Nouns in English with Examples

Rule 3: Living and Nonliving Things

We use (-‘) or (-‘s) only with living beings. We do not use an apostrophe with nonliving objects. The reason for this is that, unlike living things, non-living things cannot own things. However, as an exception, some people still use possessive cases for non-living things, though here the ‘of‘ construction is better. For example, instead of a glider’s wing, we should use the wings of a glider. Similarly, the usage of the heating system of the train is better than the train’s heating system.

Rule 4: Compound Noun

When a noun or a title consists of several words, we attach (-‘s) only to the last word.

• The king of Nepal’s visit.
• The Prime Minister of India’s speech.
• My brother-in-law’s guitar.
• Henry the Eighth’s wife.
• The Prince of Wales’s helicopter

Rule 5: Nouns in Apposition

When two nouns are in apposition, to form a possessive case, we add (-‘s) to the latter. Apposition means placing near. Therefore, when one noun follows another to describe it, the noun that follows is said to be in apposition. For example,

• That is Tagore the poet’s house.
• This is Kabir, the great reformer’s poem.
• Have you seen Ganguli, the artist’s drawing?

Rule 6: Connected Nouns in the same Sentence

When two nouns closely connected appear in the same sentence, then we add (-‘s) to the latter. For example,

• John and Robert’s bakery.
• Jesus and the Prophet’s teachings.

However, if two or more connected nouns imply separate possession, then we add (-‘s) to both nouns separately.

• Raja Rao’s and R.K. Narayan’s novels.
• Goldsmith’s and Cowper’s poems.

SPECIAL USE OF POSSESSIVE OR GENITIVE CASE

Mostly, we use possessive cases to show possession. However, sometimes we use possessive expressions of time, money, authorship, kind, etc.

Special Use of the Possessive Case

You may also like…... Types of Chemical Reactions in Chemistry

The post Formation of Possessive Case in English with Examples appeared first on Selftution.

Selftution.com | The #1 Free Educational Website for Clear, Effective Learning

Understand gender classification in English grammar with easy explanations, practical examples, and quick-reference tables.

Welcome to Selftution.com – where learning becomes effortless!

The word ‘gender’ in English grammar has been derived from the Latin ‘genus‘, which means ‘kind’ or ‘sort’.

Therefore, in English grammar, we use gender as a noun that denotes either the male or female sex.

English grammar has four types of gender: masculine, feminine, common, and neuter.

Gender in English

Masculine Gender

A noun that denotes a male is said to be of the masculine gender.

Examples of masculine gender are – boy, man, brother, father, dog, nephew, uncle, king, lion, hero, husband, son, monk, etc.

Feminine Gender

A noun that denotes a female is said to be of the feminine gender.

Examples of feminine gender are – girl, woman, sister, mother, bitch, niece, aunt, queen, lioness, heroin, wife, daughter, nun, etc.

Common Gender

A noun that can denote both a male and a female is said to be of the Common gender.

Examples of common genders are – baby, doctor, player, neighbor, friend, parent, anchor, pupil, teacher, cousin, reporter, etc.

Neuter Gender

A noun that denotes a non-living thing is said to be of the neuter gender.

The word ‘neuter’ means ‘neither’, which is neither male nor female. Examples of neuter gender are – pen, laptop, book, spectacles, chairs, school, bench, room, etc.

Back to the top

Rules for Formation and Usage of Gender in English Grammar

In English grammar, we use entirely different words for nouns with a different gender. However, we apply certain rules while changing masculine nouns to feminine nouns. There are four ways of forming the feminine of nouns.

Rule 1: By adding ‘-ess’ to the masculine noun

Examples of masculine to feminine gender in English grammar by the addition of ‘-ess’

Rule:2 By using an entirely different word for a feminine noun

Examples of masculine to feminine gender in English grammar by using a new word

Rule 3: By replacing the main noun in a compound word

Examples of the masculine to feminine gender in English grammar for a compound word

Rule 4: By the addition or replacement of letters at the end of a masculine noun

Examples of masculine to feminine Gender in English Grammar

Back to the top

A PERSONIFICATION OF NOUNS OF NEUTER GENDER

We often personify some objects without life and speak of them as if they were living beings. In other words, we regard them as males or females.

We often apply the masculine gender to the neuter nouns, which exhibit remarkable force, power, strength, and violence. For example – the Sun, Summer, Winter, Ocean, Time, Death, War, Thunder, Wave, Storm, etc.

Sentence examples of neuter nouns with masculine gender-

• The ocean returns to engulf the ship of fools. It seems he has decided to kill them all.
• Death lays his icy hand on the king.
• The Sun is scorching. It’s difficult to face him without an umbrella.

On the contrary, we apply a feminine gender to the neuter nouns which exhibit beauty, gentleness, grace, fertility, prettiness, and inferiority. For example – Earth, Moon, Spring, Hope, Virtue, Truth, Justice, Pride, Mercy, Charity, Peace, Humility, Jealousy, Fame, Modesty, Liberty, Flattery, etc.

Sentence examples of neuter nouns with feminine gender-

• The moon shed her light on rich and poor alike.
• The Earth is our mother. She takes care of us.
• Liberty is what we all love to have. But she is evading many.
• Spring has spread her mantle of green over the earth.

Back to the top

You may also like…... Types of Chemical Reactions in Chemistry

The post Gender in English – Masculine, Feminine, Common & Neuter appeared first on Selftution.

Selftution.com | The #1 Educational Website for Simple, Effective Learning

Struggling with noun rules? Learn all key singular & plural noun transformations – with easy-to-remember examples, exceptions, and practice tips. Welcome to Selftution.com, where we make grammar effortless!

There are different ways to classify nouns, and one of them is by numbers. So, based on numbers, we classify nouns as singular and plural.

A noun is singular if it refers to one person or thing, and it is plural if it refers to more than one person or thing.

In this post, we will learn about various rules applied for changing singular nouns to plural, along with examples.

There are various rules for changing singular nouns to plural. However, in this post, we will discuss the 15 most commonly used ones for changing singular nouns to plural.

Rules of Singular and Plural Nouns

Rules of Singular and plural nouns

Rule 1: Addition of ‘s’

We can change most nouns from singular to plural simply by adding ‘s’ at the end of the word.

Rules and Examples for Singular to Plural Nouns by Addition of ‘s’

Back to the top

Rule 2: Addition of ‘es’ to the Nouns Ending with a Hissing Sound

To change singular nouns ending with hissing sounds (–s, –ss, –sh, –ch, and -x) to plural, we add ‘es’ at the end of the noun.

Rules and Examples for changing singular to plural nouns by adding ‘es’

Back to the top

Rule 3: Addition of ‘s’ or ‘es’ to Nouns Ending with ‘o’

Rule 3 is the special case of rules 1 and 2, which explains how to change some singular nouns ending with ‘o’ to plural by adding either ‘s’ or ‘es’.

Examples of changing singular nouns ending with ‘-o’ to plural by adding either ‘-s’ or ‘-es’

Back to the top

Rule 4: Addition of ‘s’ to the Main Noun in the Compound Nouns

Some of the nouns are a combination of more than one word; these are called compound nouns. Therefore, to form the plural of such singular nouns, we add ‘s’ at the end of the main word. But this rule does not apply to all compound nouns. Some singular nouns in compound nouns follow their respective rules to change them to plural.

Examples of changing compound nouns to plural

We can also change singular nouns to plural by replacing the last letter or letters of the word with ‘ves’ or ‘ies’. Rules for changing singular nouns to plural by replacing the last letter or letters of the word are as follows:

Back to the top

Rule 5: Replacing ‘f’ or ‘fe’ with ‘ves’

To change most of the singular nouns ending with ‘f’ or ‘fe’ to plural, we replace them with ‘ves’. However, as an exception, some singular nouns ending in ‘f’ form their plural in the normal way, that is by the addition of ‘s’ at the end.

Examples of changing Singular Nouns to plural by replacing ‘f’ or ‘fe’ at the end with ‘ves’

Back to the top

Rule 6: Changing Singular Nouns ending with ‘y’ to Plural

Singular nouns ending in ‘y’, preceded by a consonant, form their plural by replacing it with ‘ies’. However, singular nouns ending in ‘y’, preceded by a vowel, form their plural by the addition of ‘s’ at the end.

Examples of Singular to Plural Nouns by replacing ‘consonant y’ and ‘vowel y’ with ‘ies’ or ‘s’

Back to the top

Rule 7: Replacing inside vowels or vowels

A few nouns form their plural by changing inside vowel or vowels.

Examples of Singular to Plural Nouns by replacing the inside vowel or vowels

Apart from the addition or the replacement of letters in a word, there are some special rules for changing singular nouns to plural.

Back to the top

Rule-8: Alike Singular and Plural

Some nouns have the singular and the plural alike.

Examples of singular and plural nouns are swine, sheep, deer, dozen, hundred, thousand, score, fish, pair, species, aircraft, spacecraft, and fruit.

Singular – We need a dozen mangoes. Plural – We need three dozen mangoes.

Singular – This cloth cost me a thousand rupees. Plural – This cloth costs me five thousand rupees.

In the case of fish and fruits, we also use fishes and fruits. Fish and fruit suggest a single variety. Fishes and fruits suggest a different variety.

Example,

It is good to eat fruit every day.

A variety of fruits are available in the market.

Back to the top

Rule 9: Some Nouns are always used in the Plural

Some nouns like scissors, trousers, spectacles, jeans, pajamas, binoculars, pliers, shorts, tongs, and bellows suggest two essential parts; therefore always used in the plural.

Examples,

My spectacles need to be changed.

His clothes are dirty.

Some other examples of nouns that are always used in the plural are arms, particulars, riches, savings, stairs, valuables, and outskirts.

Back to the top

Rule 10: Some Collective Nouns that appear Singular but are used as a Plural

Certain collective nouns like cattle, poultry, gentry, vermin, family, team, jury, and people have the appearance of a singular noun. But they are used as a plural.

Examples,

The cattle are grazing on the ground.

The people were not impressed.

Rule 11: Nouns that appear Plural but are used as Singular.

Some nouns ending with ‘ics’, like mathematics, politics, physics, ethics, and acoustics, look to be plural, but they are used as singular.

Examples,

He is good at politics.

Mathematics is an exact science.

Words plural in form but singular in meaning include news, innings:

The news is good.

India won by an innings and four runs.

certain diseases: mumps, rickets, shingles

certain games: billiards, darts, dominoes, bowls

Back to the top

Rule 12: Changing figures and letters to plural

We change figures and letters to plural by adding an apostrophe and ‘-s’.

For example,

Add two 4’s to three 5’s.

You don’t spell yours d’s well.

Rule 13: Singular Abstract Nouns to Plural

Rules applied for changing abstract singular nouns to plural depend on whether it is countable or not. Uncountable abstract nouns do not have a plural form. For example, love, anger, honesty, advice, experience, beauty, fear, courage, death, hope, horror, knowledge, mercy, help, pity, relief, suspicion, and work.

Whereas countable abstract nouns have a plural form. For example,

victory – victories,

decision – decisions,

failure – failures

Back to the top

Rules-14: Singular Materials or Substances Nouns to Plural

Similar to rule 14, rules applied for changing singular material nouns to a plural depend on whether it is countable or not. Uncountable material or substance nouns do not have a plural form. For example, jam, oil, gin, sand, water, wine, cream, gold, ice, and silver.

Sometimes, the same word can be countable as well as uncountable depending on its usage. Therefore, if the usage of words suggests it as a countable noun, then we can change it to plural by the addition of ‘-s’ at its end. For example, the usage of the word ‘stone‘.

This house is made of stone.

In this sentence, the word stone has been used as the name of the building material. So, it is uncountable. But, we can say –

The boy is throwing stones in the pond.

Here, the word stones means pieces of stone.

Back to the top

Rules-15: Some Nouns are always used as Singular

Some nouns like baggage, damage, luggage, furniture, shopping, camping, parking, and weather are always used in the plural.

You may also like…... Types of Chemical Reactions in Chemistry

The post Rules of Singular and Plural Nouns with Examples appeared first on Selftution.

Master the different kinds of nouns – proper, common, abstract, and collective – with Selftution.com, the #1 educational website for clear, simplified learning.

Get easy definitions, real-world examples, and quick-reference guides to strengthen your grammar skills effortlessly.

There are four kinds of nouns in English;

• Proper noun,
• Common noun,
• Abstract noun, and
• Collective noun

Apart from the above, we can also classify them as:

• Abstract and Concrete Nouns
• Countable and Uncountable Nouns

Four kinds of nouns: proper, abstract, common, and collective

Before we proceed further, it is important to know what a noun is.

NOUNS

There are eight parts of speech in the English language, and a noun is one of them.

A noun is the name of a person, place, or thing. It may also name a feeling or idea.

For example, the words boy, girl, George, New York, Everest, hospital, river, army, beauty, love, and kind are all nouns. In short, we can say that a noun is a naming word, or it is the name of anything.

PROPER NOUNS

A proper noun is the one that names a particular person, place, or thing.

The word ‘proper’ means ‘one’s own’. Hence, a Proper name is a person’s own name.

Examples of proper nouns are:

• Sachin, Robert, Abraham, Monika, Susan, etc., names a particular person.
• Jaipur, Chicago, Mexico, London, Moscow, etc., names a particular place.
• Everest, Ganga, Titanic, January, Sunday, etc. names a particular thing.

A proper noun always begins with a capital letter.Some examples of proper nouns are the names of persons, villages, towns, cities, countries, monuments, rivers, ships, mountains, months of the year, days of the week, festivals, books, etc.

Back to the top

COMMON NOUNS

A common noun is the one that gives a common name to persons, places, or things of the same kind.

Or

A common noun is a name given in common to every person or thing of the same kind.

The word ‘common’ here means ‘shared by all’.

The words book, pen, river, mountain, train, bird, animal, and city are all examples of common nouns. Ganga, Nile, and Amazon are the names of rivers. The word river is a common noun. It is the name shared by all three. But Ganga is the name of a particular river flowing in India. So, the word Ganga is a proper noun. Similarly, the words Nile and Amazon are also proper nouns.

Back to the top

ABSTRACT NOUNS

An abstract noun is the name of any state, quality, action, or feeling that we can only think of or feel but cannot touch or see.

The word ‘abstract’ here means ‘existing in thought’.

So, words like heat, beauty, truth, love, anger, height, are all examples of abstract nouns. We can feel the heat, but we cannot touch or see it. What we touch or see is a hot object and not heat. Similarly, we can think of love, but we cannot see or touch love.

Examples of abstract nouns with respect to quality, action, feeling, and state

Back to the top

COLLECTIVE NOUNS

A Collective noun is the name of a collection of persons or things taken together and spoken as one whole.

Some examples of collective nouns are crowd, mob, team, flock, herd, army, fleet, nation, bunch, pack, etc.

Some more examples of collective nouns concerning people, animals, and things:

Examples of collective nouns concerning people, animals, and things

Back to the top

ABSTRACT AND CONCRETE NOUNS

We can also classify nouns as abstract and concrete.

Abstract nouns name feelings (hate, love), qualities (courage, softness), states of mind (hope, trust), or ideas (education, knowledge). All these words have no physical form that we may touch or see. They exist in thoughts only.

Whereas, concrete nouns stand for something that we can see or touch, something that has a physical form, something that occupies space and has mass. Concrete nouns usually refer to animals (tiger, bird), people (engineer, leader), places (hospital, office), and things (watch, table, pen).

COUNTABLE AND UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS

To state simply, the things which we can count are countable nouns, and the ones which we cannot count are uncountable nouns.

Words ball, boy, bird, dogs, kite, pen, table, computer, chairs, girl, etc. are examples of countable nouns. They have both singular and plural forms. Whereas words like milk, air, light, love, honesty, courage, education, etc. are examples of uncountable nouns. They have a singular form, but no plural.

Back to the top

The post Kinds of Nouns | Proper, Common, Abstract, Collective appeared first on Selftution.

Unlock the foundation of English with clear explanations and practical tips. Welcome to Selftution.com – making grammar simple and effective for everyone!

In English, we classify words into different classes, called parts of speech. This post, “Parts of Speech in English Grammar,” will introduce kids to various classes of parts of speech.

So, let’s begin.

8 Parts of Speech in English Grammar

In English grammar, there are eight parts of speech:

• noun,
• adjective,
• pronoun,
• verb,
• adverb,
• preposition,
• conjunction, and
• interjection.

Each part of speech plays a unique role in forming sentences and conveying meaning.

Whether you’re a student aiming to enhance your grammar skills or simply curious about the fundamentals of English, this guide offers a clear and straightforward overview. Let’s dive in and explore the basics of English grammar together!

Important Facts About Parts of Speech in English Grammar

Before we proceed further, it is important to understand one key aspect of parts of speech in English grammar. A word may not always belong to the same class, and we should avoid labeling a word as strictly a noun, adjective, or verb.

A word’s classification depends on its function within a specific sentence. For example, a word may be a noun in one sentence and an adjective in another. Therefore, the class to which a word belongs is determined by its role in a particular context.

Look at the following examples with the common word ‘back’:

What part of speech a word is depends upon the work it does in the sentences it belongs to.

1. I got my back hurt during the match. (noun)
2. Thieves left the house through the back door. (adjective)
3. The contractor backed out of the agreement. (verb)
4. Raman came back yesterday. (adverb)

Let’s begin to learn some basics of all eight parts of speech in English grammar one by one:

Eight Parts of Speech in English Grammar with Function and Examples

1. NOUNS

Mahatma Gandhi

A noun is the name of a person, place, animal, or thing. For example, Robert, Julia, boy, girl, hospital, soldier, Chicago, Niagara, stone, box, etc.

It may also name a feeling or idea. For example, anger, beauty, hope, courage, etc.

Some more examples,

• Mahatma Gandhi was a great man.
• The Sun shines brightly.
• The flower smells sweet.
• He ruined everything with his anger.

A noun is basically a naming word, or we can say a noun is the name of anything.

Back to the top

2. ADJECTIVES

This part of speech adds something to the meaning of a noun (or a pronoun). For example, the word tree is a noun. We can have a tall tree, a green tree, a beautiful tree, an old tree, etc. In these expressions, the words tall, green, beautiful, and old describe the noun tree. All these words are adjectives. Thus, an adjective is a descriptive word.

An adjective is a word that adds something to the meaning of a noun (or a pronoun).

Some more examples,

• Ashoka was a great king.
• The teacher asked a difficult question.

Back to the important fact about the parts of speech

3. PRONOUNS

A pronoun is a word used in place of a noun. For example, I, me, mine, you, yours, he, him, his, she, her, hers, it, we, us ours, you, yours, they, them, theirs, etc.

Some more examples,

• Robert is tall because he eats well.
• Would you like some slices of bread?
• This is not my pen. Mine is new.

Back to the top

4. VERBS

A verb denotes an action, or being/a state or possession. All sentences must have a verb with a Subject. Verbs are always part of the Predicate, which makes a statement about the Subject.

Some examples,

• All the children sang the song. (action)
• The boy fetches a pail of water. (action)
• Your list is very long. (being/state)
• Tom has a smartwatch. (possession)

Back to the important fact about the parts of speech

5. ADVERBS

As adjectives add something to a noun, similarly, an adverb is a word that adds something to the meaning of a verb, an adjective, or another adverb.

Look at these sentences:

• Robert sleeps soundly.
• I shall wait for you outside.
• This flower is very beautiful.
• You have always helped me.

Back to the top

6. PREPOSITIONS

A preposition is a word that shows the relation between a noun or a pronoun and some other word in a sentence. For example, on, of, with, at, against, in front of, as a result of, under, etc.

The word preposition means placing it before. So it is placed before a noun or a pronoun. The other word can be a noun, a verb, or an adjective. Look at the following sentences:

• Raman is fond of cricket.
• A tired man sat under a banyan tree.
• All team members went against the captain.
• There is no gravity on the moon.

Back to the important fact about the parts of speech

7. CONJUNCTION

A conjunction is a word used to join words or sentences. For example, and, but, although, or, as, unless, etc.

Some more examples,

• I respect him, although he is very strict.
• Johan and Tom are brothers.
• Hurry up, or we might be late.
• He is intelligent but careless.

Back to the top

8. INTERJECTION

The eighth part of speech in English grammar is an interjection. An interjection is a word that expresses some sudden feeling. For example, Hurrah, Hello, Hush, Alas, Oh, etc.

We always put an exclamation mark (!) after an interjection.

• Oh! Where were you yesterday?
• Alas! The great leader is no more.
• Hurrah! We have won the game.

The word interjection means thrown in. So an interjection is a word thrown in to express some sudden feeling. Otherwise, it does not disturb the sentence at all.

Back to the top

Related Topic

• The Sentences
• Subject and Predicate
• The Phrase and the Clause

The post PARTS OF SPEECH IN ENGLISH GRAMMAR appeared first on Selftution.