Lesson 4: Errors with Possessives

and Pronouns
Today’s lesson focuses on mistakes involving possessives - when talking about
things that belong to a person - as well as a mistake with pronouns - words like
me, him, and her.

Error #9

Don’t say:
● I went to the house of my friend.
● I went to my friend house.
Say:

• I went to my friend’s house.

In English, we normally use ‘s and not OF for possessives:

● my sister’s dog
the dog of my sister
● the teacher’s car
the car of my teacher
● Paul’s wife’s cousin
the cousin of the wife of Paul

With people, as in all the examples above, we typically use ‘s - but there are some
exceptions.

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If the person is described in multiple words (instead of a single name or title),
then we typically prefer “of” or “belonging to”, or we change the structure of the
sentence to use “have” or another verb:
● The most experienced teacher in our school’s skills are impressive.
(sounds awkward)
The skills of the most experienced teacher in our school are impressive.
Or: The most experienced teacher in our school has impressive skills.
● That guy with a red hat’s car is parked in the wrong spot.
(sounds awkward)
The car belonging to that guy with a red hat is parked in the wrong spot.
Or: That guy with a red hat parked his car in the wrong spot.

What about with things that belong to objects instead of people - do we say “the
roof of the house” or “the house’s roof”? The beaches of Brazil, or Brazil’s
beaches?

In some cases, both are possible and common, especially when talking about
countries:
● the government of Australia / Australia’s government
● the flag of Russia / Russia’s flag
● the hero of the movie / the movie’s hero
● the surface of the earth / the earth’s surface
● the results of the study / the study’s results

But in some cases, “of” sounds more natural:

● the front of the car (not the car’s front)
● the color of the paint (not the paint’s color)
● the end of the speech (not the speech’s end)

How can you know which way to say it? You can’t! This is one of those things
where there’s no specific rule; it’s more about the way native English speakers
tend to say it.

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www.espressoenglish.net
But if you’re looking for a simple guideline, just use ‘s with people/names (Katie’s
dog, my father’s job) and use “of” with objects (the roof of the house, the scent
of the shampoo).

Error #10

Don’t say:
• Paul is a friend of my.
• This umbrella is our.
Say:
• Paul is a friend of mine.
• This umbrella is ours.

Use my/our/your/her/their before the word, and use

mine/ours/yours/hers/theirs after the word:
● Paul is my friend.
● Paul is a friend of mine.
● This is our umbrella.
● This umbrella is ours.
● That’s your plate.
● That plate is yours.
● It was her idea.
● That idea was hers.
● Is that their house?
● Which house is theirs?

The word his doesn’t change - it is the same before and after the word!
● That’s his dog / That dog is his.

Error #11
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Don’t say:
• Susan invited John and I to the party.
Say:
• Susan invited John and me to the party.

A lot of native English speakers make this mistake as well - they might think the
sentence above looks perfectly fine! But there is a small error: it should be “Susan
invited John and me to the party.”

We use “I” for the subject – the person who does the action in the sentence.
● I gave Tim the book.
● John and I are going to the party.

Me is the object – the person who receives the action in the sentence.

● Tim gave me the book.

OR: Tim gave the book to me.
● Susan invited John and me to the party.

Most people get confused when there are multiple subjects or objects in the
sentence, but the rule is still true:
● My brother and I live in New York.
My brother = subject; I = subject
● The teacher called Sarah and me to the front of the classroom.
The teacher = subject
Sarah = object; me = object

This subject / object rule also applies to he/she/we/they (subjects) and

him/her/us/them (objects):
● He is a doctor.

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 ● I asked him where he works.
● She just finished her studies.
● I congratulated her on graduating.
● They live in Colorado.
● I told them my phone number.

Now that you know how to use possessives and pronouns correctly, go ahead and
try the quiz to test your knowledge!

© Shayna Oliveira 2019

www.espressoenglish.net
Quiz – Lesson 4
Mark each sentence correct or incorrect, and fix any mistakes.

1. Everyone in the class celebrated the teacher's birthday.

2. Go ask Anna if this jacket is hers.
3. He and his girlfriend are both journalists.
4. I asked them to join me for coffee.
5. The extra toothpaste is in the drawer's bottom.
6. London's subway system is pretty reliable.
7. Alex and me enjoy swimming.
8. My parents helped my sisters and I with our homework.
9. That's mine bicycle.
10. The dog of my neighbor barks all day.
11. There's a deck on the left side of the house.
12. They watched their children play in the park.
13. We put all of ours things in the car.
14. I met the husband of Jenny at a party.

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Answers – Quiz – Lesson 4
1. Correct
2. Correct
3. Correct
4. Correct
5. Incorrect (Correct: The extra toothpaste is in the bottom of the drawer)
6. Correct
7. Incorrect (Correct: Alex and I enjoy swimming)
8. Incorrect (Correct: My parents helped my sisters and me with our
homework)
9. Incorrect (Correct: That's my bicycle)
10. Incorrect (Correct: My neighbor's dog barks all day)
11. Correct
12. Correct
13. Incorrect (Correct: We put all of our things in the car)
14. Incorrect (Correct: I met Jenny's husband at a party)

© Shayna Oliveira 2019

www.espressoenglish.net