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Clarence Posted 21 years ago
Grammar

Is the 's required?

0 Is the 's in "wife's" required in the sentence below? Thanks. 02br
02br
00This blind man, an old friend of my wife's, he was on his way to spend the night. 02br
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Top answer

0It is 'required', or at least preferable, in that this double genitive is acceptable, whereas the form 'a friend of my wife' (since a wife is a human) should be better presented as 'my wife's friend'. 02br 02br 00The 'he' should be omitted. 0-

— Mister Micawber

  • 0It is 'required', or at least preferable, in that this double genitive is acceptable, whereas the form 'a friend of my wife' (since a wife is a human) should be better presented as 'my wife's friend'.
  • 02br 02br 00The 'he' should be omitted.
  • 0-
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5 Answers
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0It is 'required', or at least preferable, in that this double genitive is acceptable, whereas the form 'a friend of my wife' (since a wife is a human) should be better presented as 'my wife's friend'. 02br
02br
00The 'he' should be omitted. 0-
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0 As a non-native speaker, I do find this double genitive "a friend of my wife's" difficult to accept. It seems 'wrong' since "of" already indicates a relation of 'friend' to "wife"; this construction seems to me like an exception to the rules of grammar. 02br
02br
00Is there a special meaning to "a friend of my wife's"? as compared to "a friend of my wife"? (Both actually m
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0In this case, no difference, Clarence (with the improbable use, I suppose, where the second noun is omitted: 'Is he a friend of 01i00your02i00 friend? No, he's a friend of my wife's [friend].') 02br
02br
00Here's 01i00American Heritage02i00's comment: 02br
02br
00'Usage Note: Grammarians have sometimes objec
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0 Cf: you say: "he's a friend of mine", not "of me". 0-
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0 Thanks for your replies. Mister Micawber, your post really helps a lot in clarifying my doubts, and the use and peculiar nature of the double genitive. Thanks! 0-
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