Asked by Mark
Hello!
Why don't we say possessive pronouns in English for the following words: my, your, his, her, its, our, your, their. Why do we say possessive adjectives? It doesn't make sense to me since my mother tongue is not English. Can you maybe explain this to me?
Thank you
Why don't we say possessive pronouns in English for the following words: my, your, his, her, its, our, your, their. Why do we say possessive adjectives? It doesn't make sense to me since my mother tongue is not English. Can you maybe explain this to me?
Thank you
Answers
Answered by
Mark
And one more thing how come is it possible to say My family are from Rome?
Answered by
Writeacher
The words you listed <b>are</b> possessive - they're the possessive forms of personal pronouns. All possessives, nouns or pronouns, serve as adjectives if you think about it. To say "my brother's red jacket" is telling you two different things about the jacket: It's red and it belongs to my brother. And the word "my" tells you something about "brother" - that he's MY brother not someone else's.
"My family are from Rome" is possible because "family" as a collective noun.
http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/plurals.htm#collective_nouns
Let me know if you have any questions about the explanation in that linked webpage.
"My family are from Rome" is possible because "family" as a collective noun.
http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/plurals.htm#collective_nouns
Let me know if you have any questions about the explanation in that linked webpage.