Monday, August 4, 2014

USE OF THE POSSESSIVE CASE



The  Possessive Case is now used chiefly with names of living thing; as,
The governor’s bodyground; the lion’s mane.
So we must say :
The leg of the table [not, the table’s leg].
                    The cover of the book [ not , the book’s cover].
                    The roof of the house [not, the house’s roof].
But Possessive is used with the names of personified* objects; as,

     
India’s heroes; Nature’s laws; fortune’s favourite; at duty’s call; at death’s door.

The Possessive is also  used with nouns denoting time, space or weight; as,
A day’s  march; a week’s holiday; in a year’s time; a stone’s throw; a foot’s length; a pounds’ weight.

The following phrases are also in common use:

At his fingers’ ends; for Merch’s sake; to his heart’s content; at his wit’s end; a boat’s crew.

The Possessive of a proper name or of a noun denoting a trade, profession, or relationship may be used to denote a building or place of business (church, house, school, college, shop, hospital, theatre etc.); as,
  She has gone to the baker’s (= baker’s shop).
 Tonight I am dining at my uncle’s (= uncle’s house).
 Can you tell be the way to St. Paul’s ( = St. Paul’s church)?
I attend the Town High School but my cousin attends St. Xavier’s.
He was educated at St. Joseph’s

when you are in doubt whether to use a noun in the possessive case or  with the preposition of, remember  that, as a general rule possessive case is sued to denote possession or ownership. Thus it is better to say ‘ the defeat of the enemy’ than enemy ‘s defat’, even though no doubt as to the meaning would arise.
    
Sometimes, however, a noun in the possessive case has a different meaning from a noun used with the preposition of; as,
                
The Prime Minister reception in Delhi’ means a reception held by the Prime Minister in Delhi.
The reception of the Prime minister in Delhi’ means the manner in which the people welcomed him when he entered Delhi.


The phrase ‘the love of a father’ may mean either ‘ a father’s love of his child’  or ‘a child’s love of his father’.

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