Question

Which pronoun inflection is used to indicate possession for a third-person singular female?

• A. Her
• B. Hers
• C. She
• D. Her's

Answer 1

Answer:

B. Hers

Understanding Possessive Pronouns

• Pronouns are words that replace nouns or noun phrases to avoid repetition. They can refer to people, places, things, or ideas.
• A possessive pronoun indicates ownership or possession. It answers the question "whose?" and stands alone, functioning as a noun in a sentence.

Third-Person Singular Female Pronoun

• The third-person singular female subject pronoun is she. It refers to a single female person.
• When indicating possession for a third-person singular female, there are two forms:
  • Possessive Adjective (Determiner): Her. This form always precedes a noun (e.g., "Her car is red."). It acts like an adjective, modifying the noun.
  • Possessive Pronoun: Hers. This form stands alone and replaces the noun phrase (e.g., "That red car is hers."). It functions as the subject, object, or complement in a sentence.

Key Facts on Possessive Pronouns for Competitive Exams

• No Apostrophe: Unlike possessive nouns (e.g., "John's book"), possessive pronouns (mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, theirs) never use an apostrophe. This is a common error tested in exams.
• Distinction between Possessive Adjectives and Pronouns:
  • Possessive Adjectives: my, your, his, her, its, our, their. These are always followed by a noun.
  • Possessive Pronouns: mine, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs. (Note: Its is almost exclusively used as a possessive adjective, not a standalone possessive pronoun.) These stand alone in a sentence.
• Third-Person Singular Forms Overview:
  • Male (he): Possessive adjective: his; Possessive pronoun: his. (His is unique as it's the same for both forms).
  • Female (she): Possessive adjective: her; Possessive pronoun: hers.
  • Neuter (it): Possessive adjective: its; Possessive pronoun: As mentioned, its is rarely used as a standalone possessive pronoun; phrases like "of it" or using the possessive adjective are preferred.
• Common Traps:
  • Confusion between it's (contraction of "it is" or "it has") and its (possessive adjective). Example: "It's a beautiful day. The dog wagged its tail."
  • Misusing apostrophes with yours, hers, ours, theirs. Correct forms are always without an apostrophe. For instance, "The car is theirs," not "their's."
  • Using her's instead of hers. This is grammatically incorrect.
• Role in Sentence Structure: Possessive pronouns function as nouns, taking roles like subject ("Hers is the best idea"), object ("I like hers"), or subject complement ("The choice is hers").