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Anonymous Posted 13 years ago
Grammar
its - possessive case, absolute form
Hi,
"This puppy lives in this kennel.
This kennel is its."
Does the second sentence ("this kennel is its") sound ok to native speakers?
I am pretty sure that "this house is his/hers/theirs" is perfect English but... for some reason "this <sth> is its" grates on my (learner's :-) ear?...
I realize that there are several ways to paraphrase this "suspect" phrase... and that most native speakers would very likely "personify" the puppy and modify it as "this kennel is his/hers"... but what shall I do if personification is NOT possible?
Hope my question makes sense..
mus-te
"This puppy lives in this kennel.
This kennel is its."
Does the second sentence ("this kennel is its") sound ok to native speakers?
I am pretty sure that "this house is his/hers/theirs" is perfect English but... for some reason "this <sth> is its" grates on my (learner's :-) ear?...
I realize that there are several ways to paraphrase this "suspect" phrase... and that most native speakers would very likely "personify" the puppy and modify it as "this kennel is his/hers"... but what shall I do if personification is NOT possible?
Hope my question makes sense..
mus-te
Top answer
"Does the second sentence ("this kennel is its") sound ok to native speakers? No, it is not possible. Anonymous I am pretty sure that "this house is his/hers/theirs" is perfect English but...
- "Does the second sentence ("this kennel is its") sound ok to native speakers?
- No, it is not possible.
- Anonymous I am pretty sure that "this house is his/hers/theirs" is perfect English but...
- for some reason "this is its" grates on my (learner's :-) ear?...
- Mine, too.
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3 Answers
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AnonymousThis kennel is its."Does the second sentence ("this kennel is its") sound ok to native speakers?No, it is not possible.
AnonymousI am pretty sure that "this house is his/hers/theirs" is perfect English but... for some reason "this is its" grates on my (learner's :-) ear?...Mine, too.
Anonymous
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Anonymousfor some reason "this is its" grates on my (learner's :-) ear?...Good ear. Nobody would say that. If you must use "it", it's "This kennel belongs to it." The thing is, a pet always gets "him" or "her".
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Anonymous.. but what shall I do if personification is NOT possible?What would make using 'his' or 'hers' not possible?
In any case, if we said 'This puppy lives in this kennel', we would be unlikely to add 'This kennel is his/hers/its'. There's no need to say effectively the same thing in a different way.
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