Compound nouns & possessive patterns
B2 · Pre-Advanced
Noun patterns · Possession
1) Two main ways to mark possession
- ’s / s’ → preferred for people & animals and often for time, places & organisations.
➜ Mary’s laptop · yesterday’s meeting · the company’s decision - of-phrase → preferred for inanimate things, parts & abstractions.
➜ the roof of the church · the end of the street · the cause of the fire
Both are possible with many institutions: the university’s policy / the policy of the university (the first is shorter and more natural).
2) Apostrophe: spelling & form
| Use | After… | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ’s | singular noun | my father’s car, the dog’s toys |
| ’s | irregular plural (no final -s) | children’s games, people’s views |
| s’ | regular plural in -s | the teachers’ lounge, tourists’ passports |
| ’s or ’ | singular ending in -s | Chris’s / Chris’ laptop (both accepted; follow house style) |
| Group genitive | phrase head | the Prime Minister of Spain’s visit (often better with of) |
Pronunciation of ’s: /z/ after vowels & voiced consonants (Anna’s), /s/ after /p t k f θ/ (Jack’s), /ɪz/ after sibilants (James’s).
3) Meaning: shared or separate? + the “double genitive”
- SharedAnna and Tom’s car (= one car owned by both)
- SeparateAnna’s and Tom’s cars (= two cars)
- Double genitive some friends of Anna’s / a colleague of mine (= one of Anna’s/my friends). Useful with determiners: a, some, this, etc.
4) When the of-pattern is favoured
- Inanimate/abstract: the beauty of the park, the history of art
- Parts of things: the back of the envelope, the head of the shower
- Long noun phrases: prefer clarity → the child of the neighbours who live next door (rather than piling ’s at the end)
- Containers + contents: a cup of tea, a box of matches (contrast with compound noun below)
5) Shops, homes & places with ’s
- Shops/workplaces: the baker’s, the chemist’s, the hairdresser’s (= shop or home).
Ellipsis of a head noun: shop, house, etc. - Places & organisations: London’s airports, the bank’s prediction, the club’s budget
- Time & distance: a day’s work, three weeks’ holiday, an hour’s drive
6) Compound nouns (noun + noun) instead of possession
Use a plain modifier noun before the main noun (often singular). Stress falls on the second noun.
- Common patterns: school bus, ticket office, car park, toothpaste, stomach bug
- Variant choices: more than one form may work → the shower head / the head of the shower; school policy / the school’s policy
- Irregular plural modifiers: keep the -s when it’s part of the word → sports car, clothes shop, customs officer, physics teacher
- Hyphen or no hyphen? Many compounds are two words (car park), some one word (bathroom), some hyphenated (letter-box). Follow your style guide or dictionary.
- Container nouns (empty): tea cup, wine glass, matchbox. For container + contents, use of: a cup of tea.
- Compound adjectives for measures: a two-hour flight (hyphenated adjective) vs two hours’ flight (possessive measure).
7) Quick contrasts & pitfalls
- Don’t overuse ’s with long phrases
Prefer of for readability. - Institution choice
Both forms acceptable: the country’s decision / the decision of the country (’s is shorter and more idiomatic). - Names ending in -s
Chris’s and Chris’ are both defensible; be consistent. Classical names often take just the apostrophe: Socrates’ life. - Clarity first
Pick the version that is shortest and clearest in your sentence.
All examples are illustrative and can be adapted to academic, business or everyday contexts.
Exercises:
Compound nouns and possessive patterns
Choose the correct option to complete the sentences below.
1
I’m taking a course in
this summer.
2
We’re staying at my
house this weekend.
3
I met
at the conference.
4
Employees must give
before leaving.
5
The country’s
are discussing the case.
6
Nina works as
in a fintech company.
7
They adopted
last year.
8
The storm damaged
.
9
We need to update our
guidelines.
10
The board accepted
without debate.
Compound nouns and possessive patterns
Choose the correct option for the sentences below.
1
Let’s schedule a ____ to review the design.
A.
B.
C.
D.
2
I have to give my boss ____ before I resign.
A.
B.
C.
D.
3
They’ve built a new ____ in the park.
A.
B.
C.
D.
4
We’re hiring a ____ manager to handle all inbound tickets.
A.
B.
C.
D.
5
I’ll leave the projector in the ____ after class.
A.
B.
C.
D.
6
Let’s take a ____ and start again at three o’clock.
A.
B.
C.
D.
7
Can we discuss ____ after lunch?
A.
B.
C.
D.
8
The hotel is ____ from the beach, so we can walk.
A.
B.
C.
D.
9
We stayed at my ____ house last weekend.
A.
B.
C.
D.
10
That’s a photo ____ — she took it on holiday.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Compound nouns and possessive patterns
Rephrase the underlined words in the space provided at the end of each sentence so that they are correct or more common in English.
1
I parked next to the car of my friend. →
2
We revised the decision of the committee. →
3
Let us meet in the room for meetings on the second floor. →
4
Please bring your card for identity. →
5
The prices of last year were unusually low. →
6
We waited by the gate of the school. →
7
The manual is a guide for users. →
8
They celebrated the success of the project. →
9
She started work in the department for human resources. →
10
He bought new shoes for running. →