TransWikia.com

Name of 'rule for sequential possessive'

English Language & Usage Asked by jnash on May 24, 2021

I’ve been unable to successfully search for or determine the name of this scenario that involves multiple possessive words in sequence.

We purchased some flowers for the mother of our friend, Jane. I would like to say,

"Here are Jane’s mother’s flowers."

Is there a name for this construction (not ‘compound’ or ‘joint’ possessive since the word "and" is not used)? Is this an unfortunate choice of wording that should be replaced with some other phrasing?

One Answer

It's contrived, like:

How can you put the word “and” 5 times in a row in the same sentence? I need to tell a story. The landlord of a pub called The Pig And Whistle asked a signwriter to make a new sign. When he saw it he thought that the words were too close together so he said to the signwriter “I want more space between Pig and And and And and Whistle".

The shopkeeper should just say 'Jane's flowers' as they are until Jane gives them to her mother, along with the receipt no doubt!

Answered by JMP on May 24, 2021

Add your own answers!

Ask a Question

Get help from others!

© 2024 TransWikia.com. All rights reserved. Sites we Love: PCI Database, UKBizDB, Menu Kuliner, Sharing RPP