Noun - Possessive Case

FORMATION  OF  THE  POSSESSIVE  CASE :

(a) Singular nouns form their possessive case by adding ‘s to the singular; as,

* The boy’s dog

* My father’s office

* His sister's pen

* Her dog's tail

(b) Only the apostrophe (‘) without s is added if the noun contains ( too many ) hissing sounds; as, 

* For goodness’ sake

* For conscience’ sake

* Jesus’ sake

* Moses’ laws

(c) nouns ending in -s form their possessive case by adding only an apostrophe; as,

* Boys’ school

* Girls’ hostel

* Dogs' tails

* Horses' stable 

(d) Plural nouns that do not end in -s, form the possessive case by adding ‘s; as,

* Children’s books

* Women’s club

* Men's saloon

(e) When a noun or a title consists of several words, the Possessive sign is attached ONLY to the last word; as, 

* The King of Bhutan's visit

* The Prime Minister of Mauritius' s speech

(f) When two nouns are in apposition, the possessive sign is put to the latter only; as,

* That is Tagore the poet's house.

*  This is Sunil Gavaskar the cricket player's car.

(g) When two nouns are closely connected, the possessive is put to the latter; as,

* This is Karim and Salim's bakery.

* Maya is Rohan and Sohan's sister.

(h) Each of two or more connected nouns implying separate possession  MUST  take the possessive sign; as, 

* I like to read Acharya Chatur Sen's and R. K. Naraya 's novels.

* Everybody liked Reema's and Sadhna's poems.

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USES  OF  THE  POSSESSIVE  CASE

(i) The possessive case is now used chiefly with the names of living things; as,

* The lion’s mane

* The minister’s bodyguards

(ii) With the names of  one person or many persons; as,

* a student's ticket

* many students' tickets

* boy's school

* boys' school

* Mary's sister

*  the men’s suits,

* my friends’ cars,

* Susie's ice cream

(iii) With the names of personified objects; as,                                                                

* Nature’s laws 

* Fortune’s favourites

* At duty’s call

* At wit’s end                              

* India's heroes 

(iv) With nouns denoting time, space or weight; as,

* A week's holiday

* In a year’s time

* A day’s work

* At a stone’s throw

* A pound’s weight

* a foot's length

(v) The possessive of a proper noun denoting a trade, profession or relationship can often be used  to denote a building or place of business;  as,

* She has gone to the baker’s (= baker’s shop).

* Tonight we are dining at Smith’s (= Smith’s house).

* Harish was educated at St. Joseph's ( = St. Joseph's school).

* Can you tell me the way to St. Paul's (= St. Paul's church).

(vi) With non living things : (the ...of...) is used; as,

* The leg of the table  [ NOT, the table's leg ]

* The cover of the book  [ NOT the book's cover ]

* The colour of my bike  [ NOT my bike's colour ]

* The number of the worksheet  [ NOT the worksheet's number ]

(vi) With  animals, towns and countries: either [ ...'s/...s' ]    or  [ the ... of ...:] is used; as,

* New York’s taxis  =  the taxis of New York;

* the lion’s teeth  =  the teeth of the lion;

* Germany’s big cities  =  the big cities of Germany

* India's holy places  =  holy places of India

(vii) When in doubt whether to use ( 's ) or ( of ) --

* It is better to say ' the defeat of enemy' than ' the enemy's defeat. 

 (viii) Some times, however, a noun in the possessive case has a different meaning from a noun used with the preposition 'of '; as, 

* The President's reception        =   a reception held by the President

* The reception of the President =   welcome of the President by the people

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