Chapter: Possessives
đ Vocabulary
English Grammar and Composition Class Seven
â Most Important Exam Words
possessiveownershiprelationshipwhoseapostrophesingularpluralregularirregularpossessive nounpossessive pronounbelongmineoursyourstheirschildren'sstudents'friend of mineBangladesh's nature
đ Word Formation Rules
âē Add apostrophe-s ('s) to a singular noun to form its possessive: boy â boy's.
âē Add apostrophe-s ('s) to an irregular plural noun: child â children's, man â men's.
âē Add only an apostrophe (') to a regular plural noun ending in s: girl â girls', student â students'.
âē A singular noun ending in s may take 's: Anis â Anis's, Sirajus â Sirajus's.
âē A singular noun ending in s may also take only an apostrophe to avoid an unpleasant hissing sound: Anis' flat.
âē Use possessive determiners before nouns: my book, your pencil, our school, their house.
âē Use independent possessive pronouns without a following noun: mine, yours, ours, theirs.
âē Join two sentences by replacing a pronoun phrase with a possessive noun: The tiger has a body with stripes â The tiger's body has stripes.
âē The word whose is used to ask about possession: Whose book is this?
âē Do not use an apostrophe in possessive pronouns such as yours, ours, theirs, and its.
1. Possessive Concepts (8 words)
possessive[/pÉËzesÉĒv/]adjmedium
Meaning: āĻ
āĻ§āĻŋāĻāĻžāĻ° āĻŦāĻž āĻŽāĻžāĻ˛āĻŋāĻāĻžāĻ¨āĻž-āĻ¸āĻāĻā§āĻ°āĻžāĻ¨ā§āĻ¤
Alt: āĻ¸āĻŽā§āĻĒāĻ°ā§āĻ āĻŦā§āĻāĻžāĻ¯āĻŧ āĻāĻŽāĻ¨
Example: A possessive word shows ownership or relationship.
Syn: ownership-relatedAnt: nonpossessive
đĄ Exam tip: Possessives answer the question 'Whose?'
ownership[/ËÉĘnÉĘÉĒp/]nounmedium
Meaning: āĻŽāĻžāĻ˛āĻŋāĻāĻžāĻ¨āĻž
Alt: āĻā§āĻ¨ā§ āĻāĻŋāĻā§āĻ° āĻāĻĒāĻ° āĻ
āĻ§āĻŋāĻāĻžāĻ°
Example: The possessive form indicates ownership.
Syn: possessionAnt: dispossession
đĄ Exam tip: Ownership is one of the main meanings of possessives.
relationship[/rÉĒËleÉĒĘÉnĘÉĒp/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻ¸āĻŽā§āĻĒāĻ°ā§āĻ
Alt: āĻ¯ā§āĻāĻžāĻ¯ā§āĻ āĻŦāĻž āĻāĻ¤ā§āĻŽā§ā§āĻ¤āĻž
Example: Possessives can show a relationship between people.
Syn: connectionAnt: separation
đĄ Exam tip: In 'my friend', my shows a relationship, not ownership.
belong[/bÉĒËlÉÅ/]verbeasy
Meaning: āĻ
āĻ§āĻŋāĻāĻžāĻ°āĻā§āĻā§āĻ¤ āĻšāĻā§āĻž
Alt: āĻāĻžāĻ°āĻ āĻāĻŋāĻ¨āĻŋāĻ¸ āĻšāĻā§āĻž
Example: This pencil belongs to Sushil.
Syn: be owned byAnt: be separate from
đĄ Exam tip: Use 'belong to' to express possession.
owner[/ËÉĘnÉ(r)/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻŽāĻžāĻ˛āĻŋāĻ
Alt: āĻ
āĻ§āĻŋāĻāĻžāĻ°ā§ āĻŦā§āĻ¯āĻā§āĻ¤āĻŋ
Example: The owner of the book wrote his name on it.
Syn: proprietorAnt: tenant
đĄ Exam tip: Owner means the person who possesses something.
possession[/pÉËzeĘÉn/]nounmedium
Meaning: āĻĻāĻāĻ˛ āĻŦāĻž āĻŽāĻžāĻ˛āĻŋāĻāĻžāĻ¨āĻž
Alt: āĻ¨āĻŋāĻāĻ¸ā§āĻŦ āĻāĻŋāĻ¨āĻŋāĻ¸
Example: The necklace is one of her valuable possessions.
Syn: propertyAnt: loss
đĄ Exam tip: Do not confuse possession with possessive.
property[/ËprÉpÉti/]nounmedium
Meaning: āĻ¸āĻŽā§āĻĒāĻ¤ā§āĻ¤āĻŋ
Alt: āĻ¨āĻŋāĻāĻ¸ā§āĻŦ āĻŦāĻ¸ā§āĻ¤ā§
Example: The house is the familyâs property.
Syn: possessionAnt: liability
đĄ Exam tip: Property can be used as a synonym of possession.
whose[/huËz/]pronouneasy
Meaning: āĻāĻžāĻ°
Alt: āĻāĻžāĻ° āĻŽāĻžāĻ˛āĻŋāĻāĻžāĻ¨āĻžāĻ§ā§āĻ¨
Example: Whose school bag is this?
Syn: of whom
đĄ Exam tip: Whose is different from who's, which means who is.
2. Possessive Nouns (8 words)
apostrophe[/ÉËpÉstrÉfi/]nounmedium
Meaning: āĻ
āĻĒāĻ¸āĻžāĻ°āĻŖ āĻāĻŋāĻšā§āĻ¨
Alt: āĻāĻ°ā§āĻ§ā§āĻŦāĻāĻŽāĻž āĻāĻŋāĻšā§āĻ¨
Example: An apostrophe is used in a singular possessive noun.
Syn: punctuation mark
đĄ Exam tip: The apostrophe comes before s in a singular possessive noun.
singular[/ËsÉĒÅÉĄjÉlÉ(r)/]adjeasy
Meaning: āĻāĻāĻŦāĻāĻ¨
Alt: āĻāĻāĻāĻŋ āĻŦā§āĻāĻžā§ āĻāĻŽāĻ¨
Example: Add apostrophe-s to a singular noun.
Syn: oneAnt: plural
đĄ Exam tip: Example: boy becomes boy's.
plural[/ËplĘÉrÉl/]adjeasy
Meaning: āĻŦāĻšā§āĻŦāĻāĻ¨
Alt: āĻāĻāĻžāĻ§āĻŋāĻ āĻŦā§āĻāĻžā§ āĻāĻŽāĻ¨
Example: Girls' is a plural possessive form.
Syn: multipleAnt: singular
đĄ Exam tip: Regular plural nouns ending in s take only an apostrophe.
regular[/ËreÉĄjÉlÉ(r)/]adjeasy
Meaning: āĻ¨āĻŋā§āĻŽāĻŋāĻ¤
Alt: āĻ¸āĻžāĻ§āĻžāĻ°āĻŖ āĻ¨āĻŋā§āĻŽ āĻ
āĻ¨ā§āĻ¸āĻ°āĻŖāĻāĻžāĻ°ā§
Example: Books is a regular plural noun.
Syn: usualAnt: irregular
đĄ Exam tip: Regular plurals usually form their plural with s or es.
irregular[/ÉĒËreÉĄjÉlÉ(r)/]adjmedium
Meaning: āĻ
āĻ¨āĻŋā§āĻŽāĻŋāĻ¤
Alt: āĻ¸āĻžāĻ§āĻžāĻ°āĻŖ āĻ¨āĻŋā§āĻŽ āĻ
āĻ¨ā§āĻ¸āĻ°āĻŖ āĻāĻ°ā§ āĻ¨āĻž āĻāĻŽāĻ¨
Example: Children is an irregular plural noun.
Syn: unusualAnt: regular
đĄ Exam tip: Irregular plurals take apostrophe-s: children's.
student's[/ËstjuËdÉnts/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻāĻžāĻ¤ā§āĻ°ā§āĻ°
Alt: āĻāĻāĻāĻ¨ āĻļāĻŋāĻā§āĻˇāĻžāĻ°ā§āĻĨā§āĻ°
Example: The student's book is on the desk.
Syn: of a student
đĄ Exam tip: Student's shows possession by one student.
students'[/ËstjuËdÉnts/]nounmedium
Meaning: āĻāĻžāĻ¤ā§āĻ°āĻĻā§āĻ°
Alt: āĻāĻāĻžāĻ§āĻŋāĻ āĻļāĻŋāĻā§āĻˇāĻžāĻ°ā§āĻĨā§āĻ°
Example: The students' representatives met the principal.
Syn: of students
đĄ Exam tip: Students' shows possession by several students.
children's[/ËtĘÉĒldrÉnz/]nounmedium
Meaning: āĻļāĻŋāĻļā§āĻĻā§āĻ°
Alt: children-āĻāĻ° āĻ
āĻ§āĻŋāĻāĻžāĻ°āĻ¸ā§āĻāĻ āĻ°ā§āĻĒ
Example: Children's garments are sold in that market.
Syn: of children
đĄ Exam tip: Children is already plural, so write children's, not childrens'.
3. Possessive Pronouns (8 words)
pronoun[/ËprÉĘnaĘn/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻ¸āĻ°ā§āĻŦāĻ¨āĻžāĻŽ
Alt: āĻŦāĻŋāĻļā§āĻˇā§āĻ¯ āĻŦāĻž āĻ¨āĻžāĻŽā§āĻ° āĻĒāĻ°āĻŋāĻŦāĻ°ā§āĻ¤ā§ āĻŦā§āĻ¯āĻŦāĻšā§āĻ¤ āĻĒāĻĻ
Example: Mine is a possessive pronoun.
Syn: substitute word
đĄ Exam tip: A possessive pronoun can stand alone.
my[/maÉĒ/]adjeasy
Meaning: āĻāĻŽāĻžāĻ°
Alt: āĻāĻŽāĻžāĻ° āĻ
āĻ§āĻŋāĻāĻžāĻ°āĻā§āĻā§āĻ¤
Example: This is my pencil.
Syn: belonging to me
đĄ Exam tip: My must be followed by a noun.
mine[/maÉĒn/]pronouneasy
Meaning: āĻāĻŽāĻžāĻ°āĻāĻŋ
Alt: āĻāĻŽāĻžāĻ° āĻāĻŋāĻ¨āĻŋāĻ¸
Example: This pencil is mine.
Syn: my own
đĄ Exam tip: Mine is not followed directly by a noun.
our[/aĘÉ(r)/]adjeasy
Meaning: āĻāĻŽāĻžāĻĻā§āĻ°
Alt: āĻāĻŽāĻžāĻĻā§āĻ° āĻ
āĻ§āĻŋāĻāĻžāĻ°āĻā§āĻā§āĻ¤
Example: Our country is beautiful.
Syn: belonging to us
đĄ Exam tip: Our is used before a noun.
ours[/ËaĘÉz/]pronouneasy
Meaning: āĻāĻŽāĻžāĻĻā§āĻ°āĻāĻŋ
Alt: āĻāĻŽāĻžāĻĻā§āĻ° āĻāĻŋāĻ¨āĻŋāĻ¸
Example: Ours is a beautiful country.
Syn: our own
đĄ Exam tip: Ours can be used as the subject or after a verb.
your[/jÉË(r)/]adjeasy
Meaning: āĻ¤ā§āĻŽāĻžāĻ° āĻŦāĻž āĻāĻĒāĻ¨āĻžāĻĻā§āĻ°
Alt: āĻ¤ā§āĻŽāĻžāĻĻā§āĻ° āĻ
āĻ§āĻŋāĻāĻžāĻ°āĻā§āĻā§āĻ¤
Example: Is this your classroom?
Syn: belonging to you
đĄ Exam tip: Your is followed by a noun.
yours[/jÉËz/]pronouneasy
Meaning: āĻ¤ā§āĻŽāĻžāĻ°āĻāĻŋ āĻŦāĻž āĻāĻĒāĻ¨āĻžāĻĻā§āĻ°āĻāĻŋ
Alt: āĻ¤ā§āĻŽāĻžāĻĻā§āĻ° āĻāĻŋāĻ¨āĻŋāĻ¸
Example: This notebook is yours.
Syn: your own
đĄ Exam tip: Yours never takes an apostrophe.
theirs[/ðeÉz/]pronounmedium
Meaning: āĻ¤āĻžāĻĻā§āĻ°āĻāĻŋ
Alt: āĻ¤āĻžāĻĻā§āĻ° āĻāĻŋāĻ¨āĻŋāĻ¸
Example: The books on the shelf are theirs.
Syn: their own
đĄ Exam tip: Theirs is the independent possessive form of their.
4. Possessive Forms in Context (8 words)
friend[/frend/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻŦāĻ¨ā§āĻ§ā§
Alt: āĻāĻ¨āĻŋāĻˇā§āĻ āĻĒāĻ°āĻŋāĻāĻŋāĻ¤ āĻŦā§āĻ¯āĻā§āĻ¤āĻŋ
Example: Sushil is a friend of mine.
Syn: companionAnt: enemy
đĄ Exam tip: Friend of mine is a possessive expression.
classmate[/ËklÉËsmeÉĒt/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻ¸āĻšāĻĒāĻžāĻ ā§
Alt: āĻāĻāĻ āĻļā§āĻ°ā§āĻŖāĻŋāĻ° āĻļāĻŋāĻā§āĻˇāĻžāĻ°ā§āĻĨā§
Example: My classmate helped me with my homework.
Syn: schoolmate
đĄ Exam tip: Classmate can be used with a possessive determiner.
teacher[/ËtiËtĘÉ(r)/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻļāĻŋāĻā§āĻˇāĻ
Alt: āĻ¯āĻŋāĻ¨āĻŋ āĻļāĻŋāĻā§āĻˇāĻž āĻĻā§āĻ¨
Example: Our class teacher is serious about homework.
Syn: educatorAnt: student
đĄ Exam tip: Our modifies teacher in the sentence.
homework[/ËhÉĘmwÉËk/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻŦāĻžā§āĻŋāĻ° āĻāĻžāĻ
Alt: āĻŦāĻŋāĻĻā§āĻ¯āĻžāĻ˛ā§ā§āĻ° āĻŦāĻžāĻāĻ°ā§ āĻ¸āĻŽā§āĻĒāĻ¨ā§āĻ¨ āĻāĻ°āĻžāĻ° āĻāĻžāĻ
Example: Sushil has not completed his homework.
Syn: assignment
đĄ Exam tip: Homework is an uncountable noun.
pencil[/ËpensÉl/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻĒā§āĻ¨ā§āĻ¸āĻŋāĻ˛
Alt: āĻ˛ā§āĻāĻžāĻ° āĻāĻāĻāĻŋ āĻāĻĒāĻāĻ°āĻŖ
Example: I lent him my pencil.
Syn: writing instrument
đĄ Exam tip: My before pencil is a possessive determiner.
school[/skuËl/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻŦāĻŋāĻĻā§āĻ¯āĻžāĻ˛ā§
Alt: āĻļāĻŋāĻā§āĻˇāĻžāĻĒā§āĻ°āĻ¤āĻŋāĻˇā§āĻ āĻžāĻ¨
Example: I reach my school in time.
Syn: educational institution
đĄ Exam tip: My school means the school connected with me.
bus[/bĘs/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻŦāĻžāĻ¸
Alt: āĻ¯āĻžāĻ¤ā§āĻ°ā§āĻŦāĻžāĻšā§ āĻ¯āĻžāĻ¨
Example: Uncle Masud drives our school bus.
Syn: coach
đĄ Exam tip: Our modifies school bus in the example.
box[/bÉks/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻŦāĻžāĻā§āĻ¸
Alt: āĻā§āĻ¨ā§ āĻāĻŋāĻ¨āĻŋāĻ¸ āĻ°āĻžāĻāĻžāĻ° āĻĒāĻžāĻ¤ā§āĻ°
Example: Sushil's pencil box has been lost.
Syn: container
đĄ Exam tip: Sushil's means the pencil box belonging to Sushil.
5. Vocabulary from the Reading Text (8 words)
parent[/ËpeÉrÉnt/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻĒāĻŋāĻ¤āĻž āĻŦāĻž āĻŽāĻžāĻ¤āĻž
Alt: āĻ¸āĻ¨ā§āĻ¤āĻžāĻ¨ā§āĻ° āĻ
āĻāĻŋāĻāĻžāĻŦāĻ
Example: The parent smiled tenderly at the child.
Syn: guardianAnt: child
đĄ Exam tip: Parent may mean either father or mother.
tender[/ËtendÉ(r)/]adjmedium
Meaning: āĻ¸ā§āĻ¨ā§āĻšāĻĒā§āĻ°ā§āĻŖ
Alt: āĻā§āĻŽāĻ˛ āĻŦāĻž āĻ¨āĻ°āĻŽ
Example: The parent gave the child a tender smile.
Syn: lovingAnt: harsh
đĄ Exam tip: Tender smile means a loving or gentle smile.
bathe[/beÉĒð/]verbmedium
Meaning: āĻā§āĻ¸āĻ˛ āĻāĻ°āĻžāĻ¨ā§
Alt: āĻĒāĻžāĻ¨āĻŋāĻ¤ā§ āĻ§ā§ā§āĻž
Example: The mother helps to bathe her child.
Syn: washAnt: dirty
đĄ Exam tip: Bathe is a verb; bath is generally a noun.
comb[/kÉĘm/]verbeasy
Meaning: āĻāĻŋāĻ°ā§āĻ¨āĻŋ āĻāĻ°āĻž
Alt: āĻā§āĻ˛ āĻāĻāĻā§āĻžāĻ¨ā§
Example: She combs her daughter's hair.
Syn: brushAnt: tangle
đĄ Exam tip: Comb can be both a noun and a verb.
gentle[/ËdĘentÉl/]adjeasy
Meaning: āĻāĻĻā§āĻ° āĻ āĻā§āĻŽāĻ˛
Alt: āĻ¨āĻŽā§āĻ°
Example: Parents teach their children to be gentle and kind.
Syn: mildAnt: rough
đĄ Exam tip: Gentle and kind are complementary adjectives.
train[/treÉĒn/]verbeasy
Meaning: āĻĒā§āĻ°āĻļāĻŋāĻā§āĻˇāĻŖ āĻĻā§āĻā§āĻž
Alt: āĻ
āĻā§āĻ¯āĻžāĻ¸ āĻāĻ°āĻžāĻ¨ā§
Example: Parents train their children to follow rules.
Syn: teachAnt: neglect
đĄ Exam tip: Train someone to do something is a common structure.
blessed[/ËblesÉĒd/]adjmedium
Meaning: āĻāĻļā§āĻ°ā§āĻŦāĻžāĻĻāĻĒā§āĻˇā§āĻ
Alt: āĻĒāĻŦāĻŋāĻ¤ā§āĻ° āĻŦāĻž āĻ¸ā§āĻāĻžāĻā§āĻ¯āĻŽā§
Example: Caring for a child is a blessed task.
Syn: holyAnt: cursed
đĄ Exam tip: Blessed task means a sacred or fortunate duty.
forever[/fÉËrevÉ(r)/]adveasy
Meaning: āĻāĻŋāĻ°āĻāĻžāĻ˛
Alt: āĻ¸āĻ°ā§āĻŦāĻĻāĻž
Example: The parents promised to love the child forever.
Syn: alwaysAnt: never
đĄ Exam tip: Forever is an adverb of time.
6. Possessive Transformation Vocabulary (8 words)
tiger[/ËtaÉĒÉĄÉ(r)/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻŦāĻžāĻ
Alt: āĻāĻāĻāĻŋ āĻŦāĻ¨ā§āĻ¯ āĻĒā§āĻ°āĻžāĻŖā§
Example: The tiger's body has stripes.
Syn: wild cat
đĄ Exam tip: Tiger's is formed from the singular noun tiger.
spider[/ËspaÉĒdÉ(r)/]nounmedium
Meaning: āĻŽāĻžāĻā§āĻ¸āĻž
Alt: āĻāĻ āĻĒāĻž-āĻŦāĻŋāĻļāĻŋāĻˇā§āĻ āĻĒā§āĻ°āĻžāĻŖā§
Example: The spiders' webs catch insects.
Syn: arachnid
đĄ Exam tip: Spiders' is a regular plural possessive form.
web[/web/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻāĻžāĻ˛
Alt: āĻŽāĻžāĻā§āĻ¸āĻžāĻ° āĻ¤ā§āĻ°āĻŋ āĻāĻžāĻ˛
Example: The spider's web is very strong.
Syn: net
đĄ Exam tip: Webs becomes webs' when showing plural possession.
picture[/ËpÉĒktĘÉ(r)/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻāĻŦāĻŋ
Alt: āĻāĻŋāĻ¤ā§āĻ°
Example: The book's pictures are obscure.
Syn: image
đĄ Exam tip: Book's pictures means the pictures of the book.
cat[/kÃĻt/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻŦāĻŋā§āĻžāĻ˛
Alt: āĻāĻāĻāĻŋ āĻā§āĻšāĻĒāĻžāĻ˛āĻŋāĻ¤ āĻĒā§āĻ°āĻžāĻŖā§
Example: The cat's baby is called a kitten.
Syn: feline
đĄ Exam tip: Cat's is the singular possessive form.
shark[/ĘÉËk/]nouneasy
Meaning: āĻšāĻžāĻāĻ°
Alt: āĻāĻāĻāĻŋ āĻ¸āĻžāĻŽā§āĻĻā§āĻ°āĻŋāĻ āĻŽāĻžāĻ
Example: The shark's teeth are sharp.
Syn: sea predator
đĄ Exam tip: One shark takes shark's, not sharks'.
sheep[/ĘiËp/]nounhard
Meaning: āĻā§ā§āĻž
Alt: āĻāĻ āĻ§āĻ°āĻ¨ā§āĻ° āĻā§āĻšāĻĒāĻžāĻ˛āĻŋāĻ¤ āĻĒā§āĻ°āĻžāĻŖā§
Example: The sheep's fur keeps it warm.
Syn: ovine animal
đĄ Exam tip: Sheep has the same singular and plural form; context decides the number.
nature[/ËneÉĒtĘÉ(r)/]nounmedium
Meaning: āĻĒā§āĻ°āĻā§āĻ¤āĻŋ
Alt: āĻĒā§āĻ°āĻžāĻā§āĻ¤āĻŋāĻ āĻĒāĻ°āĻŋāĻŦā§āĻļ
Example: Bangladesh's nature is green and beautiful.
Syn: environmentAnt: artificiality
đĄ Exam tip: Bangladesh's is a possessive form of a proper noun.
đĄ Exam Tips
âĸ Possessives generally answer the question 'Whose?' and express ownership or relationship.
âĸ Distinguish my from mine: my comes before a noun, while mine stands alone.
âĸ Distinguish our from ours: our modifies a noun, while ours does not take a noun after it.
âĸ Use students' for the belongings of many students, but student's for the belongings of one student.
âĸ Remember that irregular plural nouns such as children and men take 's: children's, men's.
âĸ The possessive form of it is its, without an apostrophe; it's means it is or it has.
âĸ Whose asks about possession, whereas who's is the contraction of who is or who has.
âĸ For a regular plural noun ending in s, place the apostrophe after s: teachers'.
âĸ In transformation exercises, identify whether the owner is singular, regular plural, or irregular plural.
âĸ Check whether a possessive pronoun is being used before a noun or independently after a verb.
âĸ Use 'a friend of mine' as an alternative possessive expression.
âĸ In names ending in s, both Anis's and Anis' may be accepted according to the stated style.