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 #2 (permalink) Sat May 31, 2008 9:07 am About possessive pronouns: In the sight of me vs In the sight of mine |
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| 'a friend of mine' = 'a friend of my friends'. If you find the logic goes well with the phrase according to this equation, then it's OK; if not you need a reconsideration. |
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Haihao
I'm a Communicator ;-)
Joined: 26 Oct 2006
Posts: 1392
Location: Japan
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| #3 (permalink) Sat May 31, 2008 9:35 am About possessive pronouns: In the sight of me vs In the sight of mine |
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| Haihao wrote: |
| 'a friend of mine' = 'a friend of my friends'. If you find the logic goes well with the phrase according to this equation, then it's OK; if not you need a reconsideration. |
No, Haihao,
"a friend of my friends" = my friends' friend
"a friend of mine" = my friend
If you google the term "double possessive", you'll get a lot of good explanations. Here is one:
http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/possessives.htm
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Double Possessives
Do we say "a friend of my uncle" or "a friend of my uncle's"? In spite of the fact that "a friend of my uncle's" seems to overwork the notion of possessiveness, that is usually what we say and write. The double possessive construction is sometimes called the "post-genitive" or "of followed by a possessive case or an absolute possessive pronoun" (from the Oxford English Dictionary, which likes to show off). The double possessive has been around since the fifteenth century, and is widely accepted. It's extremely helpful, for instance, in distinguishing between "a picture of my father" (in which we see the old man) and "a picture of my father's" (which he owns). Native speakers will note how much more natural it is to say "He's a fan of hers" than "he's a fan of her."
Generally, what follows the "of" in a double possessive will be definite and human, not otherwise, so we would say "a friend of my uncle's" but not "a friend of the museum's [museum, instead]." What precedes the "of" is usually indefinite (a friend, not the best friend), unless it's preceded by the demonstratives this or that, as in "this friend of my father's." |
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Jamie (K)
I'm a Communicator ;-)
Joined: 24 Feb 2006
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Location: Detroit, Michigan, USA
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| #4 (permalink) Sat May 31, 2008 9:52 am About possessive pronouns: In the sight of me vs In the sight of mine |
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| Oh I am sorry I missed one more quotation mark. I meant to say: a friend of mine = a friend of my friends'. Anyhow, neither is this a correct explanation here. Please forget about it and see Jamie's, which is correct. |
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Haihao
I'm a Communicator ;-)
Joined: 26 Oct 2006
Posts: 1392
Location: Japan
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| #5 (permalink) Sat May 31, 2008 10:01 am thanks |
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| Thanks a lot for your contribution. I have drawn great benefit. |
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Mediha
New Member
Joined: 31 May 2008
Posts: 2
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| Phrase "A three pipe problem" | Can I say it like this? |
