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Another common way of showing
possession
in
English
is through
using
of with a possessive ('s, s') proper
noun
(name).This usage is similar to of + a possessive
pronoun:
Bob is a friend of Jim's.
Mrs. Smith is a neighbor
of the
Smiths'.
Angela and Julie are friends
of Bob's and
Jane's.
Is this painting one of Lisa's?
If you don't have a pencil,
use
one of
Dennis'.
Amy has three dogs. Is that
dog
one of
Amy's?
I borrowed two of Bob's books
and
several of
Ken's.
The boss likes several of
their ideas and all
of Bob's
and
mine.
Jim ate his lunch and also
half of
Ted's.
Special
Notes:
| 1. |
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Notice these differences in
meaning:
Bob is a friend of Jim'sand
Bill's.
Bob is a friend of Jim and Bill's.
In the first sentence, Bob
is Jim's friend and
he's also Bill's friend. The
two friendships are
separate. In the second sentence,
Bob is a friend
whom Jim and Bill share.
We went in Jim's and Bill's
cars.
We went in Jim and Bill's car.
In the first sentence, we
went in Jim's car and
in Bill's car. There were
at least two cars. In
the second sentence, there's
only one car--and
it belongs to both Jim and
Bill.
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| 2. |
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The
+ family name + 's
(or s') usually means
'Mr. and Mrs. [name]: Mr.
___ and his
wife ___ In "a neighbor of the
Smiths',"
someone is a neighbor to both Mr.
and Mrs. Smith. |
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