UNIT 2. POSSESSIVE CASE

UNIT 2. POSSESSIVE CASE

Entry Test

Choose the proper item.

1. I’d like to know the _____ opinion about this item of news.

1) editor’s-in-chief 2) editor-in-chief’s 3) editor-in-chief

2. It’s his new _____ car.

1) sport’s 2) sports’ 3) sports

3. Jane took _____ bag instead of his own.

1) somebody’s else 2) somebody else 3) somebody else’s

4. _____ luggage was not well attended to.

1) A passengers’ 2) Passengers’ 3) Passenger’s

5. The students borrowed _____ notes.

1) each other’s 2) each’s other 3) each others’

6. It’s amazing what a _____ hotel can do to revive your spirits.

1) five stars’ 2) five-star 3) five-star’s

7. A woman stepped out from _____ and waved to us.

1) hairdresser 2) the hairdressers’ 3) the hairdresser’s

8. How many of ___ novels have you read?

1) Dicken’s 2) Dickens’ 3) Dickens

9. He was on his _____ walk to Berkley.

1) two mile’s 2) two-miles 3) two miles’

10. My _____ parents have decided to move to the country.

1) sister’s-in-law 2) sister-in-law’s 3) sister-in-law

11. It’s only _____ drive from the airport.

1) a twenty-minute 2) a twenty minutes’ 3) a twenty-minutes

12. Kate saw a fantastic article in _____ local paper.

1) the today’s 2) today’s 3) the today

13. Could you give me _____ worth of those apples?

1) a dollars’ 2) a dollar’s 3) dollar’s

14. There was a scratch on my _____.

1) car paintwork 2) car’s paintwork 3) paintwork of car

15. The most senior clergyman in the church of England is _____.

1) Canterbury’s Archbishop 2) the Archbishop of Canterbury 3) the Canterbury Archbishop

1. The Possessive Case. Form and Usage (1)

Exercise1.1. Study the rule.

We usually use the possessive ’s structure when talking about something that belongs to people or other living things

e.g. Have your seen my brother’s new car?

We’ll be at John’s soon. (John’s house)

The dog’s hind leg is hurt.

These are the key rules about what form of the possessive case to use:

’s is used with singular nouns and plural nouns not ending in s:

e.g. a man’s job, men’s work

a single apostrophe (’) is used with plural nouns ending in s:

e.g. a girls’ school, the Smiths’ car

classical names ending in susually add only the apostrophe (’):

e.g. Pythagoras’ Theorem, Keats’ poems

other proper names ending in scan take ’s or the apostrophe alone (’):

e.g. Mr. Jones’s (Mr. Jones’) house

with compounds, the last word takes ’s:

e.g. my brother-in-law’s guitar

if the possessive pattern consists of two or more nouns, ’s is added to the last word even if the word is not a noun:

e.g. Henry the Eighth’s wives, somebody else’s house, in an hour or so’s time

if the possessive pattern consists of two or more nouns which form a single team or group ’s is added to the last word only

e.g. Mary and Tom’s wedding

when the nouns do not form a single group ’s is used with both nouns

e.g. Mary’s and Tom’s cars

’s can also be used after abbreviations:

e.g. the MP’s briefcase

’scan be used with one, somebody, everybody, each other, etc

e.g. one’s house, each other’s notes

two possessive cases can be used together

e.g. our neighbour’s children’s loud music

Practice Activities.

Exercise1.2. The possessive ending ’s is pronounced [s] after the following consonants [f], [k], [p], [t], [Ө], [z] after the following consonants: [b], [d], [g], [l], [m], [n], [ŋ], [v], [ð] and vowels, and [iz] after the sounds: [z], [s], [ʤ], [ʧ]. Put the words into three columns according to its pronunciation.

[s]

[z]

[iz]

The Pope’s visit

1) the Pope’s visit	11) your money’s worth
2) women’s liberation	12) the horse’s mouth
3) St George’s Hall	13) the Devil’s Disciple
4) the water’s edge	14) Mike’s place
5) a year’s time	15) the teacher’s opinion
6) Jack’s dinner	16) the princess’s wedding dress
7) France’s dress	17) for Pete’s sake
8) a month’s time	18) the monarch’s role
9) nature’s engineering	19) Steve’s study
10) the church’s work	20) a waitress’s uniform

Exercise 1.3. Rewrite these sentences using ’s, s’, or just an apostrophe (’).

1. This bicycle is for a child.	6. This is a club for women.
2. This pen belongs to the teacher.	7. It’s a school for girls.
3. He describes the career of the actress.	8. This is the lounge for residents.
4. That is a job for a stewardess.	9. This umbrella belongs to James.
5. The toys belong to the children.	10. That hat belongs to Doris.

Exercise 1.4. Put the word combinations into the possessive form.

1) the clothes of the boys	16) the new tie of my friend Cyril
2) the club of the women	17) the crown of the King of England
3) the father of James	18) the visit of the President of Chile
4) my mother-in-law favourite flowers	19) the castle of Elizabeth the Second
5) the orders of the Commander-in-Chief	20) the famous shop of Fortnum and Mason
6) the name of my sister-in-law	21) the holiday of my friend Dorris
7) the poems of Burns	22) the reforms of Peter the Great
8) the park of St James	23) a wrist-watch of a lady or a gentleman
9) the countries of Caesar and Cleopatra	24) the favourite of the boss
10) the wedding of William and Mary	25) the bedroom of my mum and dad
11) the hats of ladies	26) the garden of their grandparents
12) the stories told by Mary and Jack	27) the names of other schoolchildren
13) the toys of the children	28) the fault of somebody else
14) the law of Archimedes	29) beliefs of other people
15) the typist of Mr. Sims	30) the partnership of Smith, Wilson and Nelson

Exercise 1.5. Translate the following word combinations from Russian into English.

1) голос актрисы	9) квартира Мэри и Джона
2) машина мистера Дэвиса	10) замок Генриха VIII
3) фуражки полицейских	11) свадьба моей невестки
4) кольцо принцессы Дианы	12) права женщин
5) женская и детская одежда	13) собака детей соседа
6) ничья вина	14) дело кого-то еще
7) багаж пассажиров	15) мнение американского президента
8) речь Министра иностранных дел

2. The Possessive Case. Form and Usage (2)

Exercise 2.1. Study the rule.

The possessive structure is used

with the names of shops, companies and people/places that provide a service

e.g. Was there anything nice at the baker’s this morning?

I’m getting the Christmas shopping at Macy’s.

She is at the doctor’s.

with the names of countries, organizations, cities, institutions, machines, vehicles, buildings

e.g. Oil is Saudi Arabia’s biggest export.

The BBC’s new programmes are really interesting.

Radio City Hall is one of New York’s most famous theatres.

We were amazed by the ship’s sheer size.

with the words the sun, the earth, the world, city, street, etc

e.g. the earth’s atmosphere

with words referring to quantity or measure of duration, distance or value

e.g. There will be an hour’s delay.

The beach was ten minutes’ drive from the hotel.

He covered two kilometers’ distance in half an hour.

They ordered a thousand dollars’ worth of children’s toys and clothes.

We can also use compound nouns to express the same idea.

e.g. The beach was a ten-minute drive from the hotel.

with words referring to location in time (but not with dates)

e.g. Have you seen the poem in today’s ‘Observer’?

in personification when something abstract is treated as if it was a person

e.g. love’s passionate embrace, jealousy’s dark thoughts

in certain fixed expressions

e.g. She was at death’s door. For heaven’s sake, be quiet!

Nouns in the possessive case can sometimes be used without a following noun when stating that the first noun is one of several. The indefinite article is used in this pattern.

e.g. It’s a film of Hitchcock’s. She’s a friend of my mother’s.

Practice Activities.

Exercise 2.2. Complete these sentences using the appropriate possessive form.

1. The bike that belongs to my neighbour’s children is my __________ bike.

2. The prices we have this year are called __________.

3. The scheme sponsored by the Duke of Edinburgh is known as __________.

4. A drive of two hours is called __________.

5. The office where the managing director works is known as __________.

6. The car that belongs to my sister-in-law is called __________.

7. The paper I read yesterday can be referred to as __________.

8. A school for boys is called __________.

9. A rest for five minutes is called __________.

10. The union that represents railway men is ___________.

11. The law, which was formulated by a man called Murphy, is known as __________.

12. A trip that lasted two days is called __________.

13. He walked for five kilometers, so he covered __________ distance.

14. The home where the nurses live is called __________.

15. The car, which belongs to Mr. Brown’s wife, is __________.

16. The special offer that is valid for this month is called __________.

17. The changing room used by women is called __________.

18. A break of fifteen minutes is called __________.

19. He paid twenty dollars for book, he had __________ of books.

20. John and Dorris celebrated their silver wedding, it was __________.

Exercise 2.3. Complete the sentences by adding apostrophe or apostrophe s (‘s) to the noun group in brackets.

1. This is my __________ house. (parents)

2. You know John? He’s __________ father. (David and Neil)

3. I borrowed __________ bike. (Lewis)

4. I’ll be staying at my __________. (uncle and aunt)

5. That looks like __________ car. (John and Jean)

6. Could you give me __________ address? (Charles)

7. You need __________ rest. (a couple of days)

8. We usually have __________ holiday in summer. (two weeks)

9. Did you see the cartoon in __________ newspaper? (yesterday)

10. Are you coming to my __________ party? (brother-in-law)

11. __________ versions of the event seemed different. (Mr. Smith and Mr. Sims)

12. There’s a new __________ surgery on the corner of Greenford Street. (Dr. Brown)

13. The company manufactures low cost __________ uniforms. (nurses)

14. Don’t get involved into __________ problems. (other people)

15. __________ reign lasted for 45 years. (Elizabeth the First)

Exercise 2.4. Translate the following word combinations from Russian into English.

1. поведение Джона и Джека	11. двадцатиминутная прогулка
2. мышиные хвосты	12. пятикилометровое расстояние
3. трехлетнее отсутствие	13. двухчасовая поездка на автомобиле
4. недельный отпуск	14. лисий мех
5. ущерб в две тысячи долларов	15. роль актрисы
6. копыта лошадей	16. ошибки других людей
7. деньги друг друга	17. пятилетний период
8. десятиметровое расстояние	18. книги на двадцать долларов
9. слова прохожих	19. цены прошлого месяца
10. подпись главного редактора	20. проблема кого-то еще

Exercise 2.5. Put the possessive apostrophe (’) in the correct place in the following set-expressions. Look them up in the dictionary and translate them into Russian.

1) to lead a dogs life	11) be on the razors edge
2) one mans meat is another mans poison	12) to one’s hearts content
3) out of harms way	13) at arms length
4) for goodness sake	14) by a hairs breath
5) a fair days pay for a fair days work	15) the partys life and soul
6) a womans work is never done	16) for old times sake
7) at a stones throw	17) a needles eye
8) wolves in sheeps clothes	18) at one’s wits end
9) a lions share	19) to move at a snails pace
10) Hercules labour	20) a Thurdays child

3. The Possessive Case or the of-phrase

Exercise 3.1. Study the rule.

We use the possessive ’sstructure especially when the first noun is the name of a person, group of people, country, city, organization, animal.

Compare: my father’s name the name of the book

the firm’s structure the structure of plastic

America’s influence the influence of alcohol

the dog’s leg the leg of the table

We can use an of-phrase :

with an inanimate noun, referring to something that is not living,
when we are talking about a process, or a change over time,
when the noun is a long noun phrase.

e.g. the cover of the book

the establishment of the committee,

the destruction of the forest,

She is the sister of someone I used to go to school with.

Practice Activities.

Exercise 3.2. Make two noun groups from each set of words. Comment on the use of ’s and an of-group.

Model: John’s arm; the arm of the chair

1) the policy: full employment, the company

2) the style: my favourite author, the 1930s

3) the place: language education, women

4) ideas: modern physics, my sons

5) rules: the club, football

6) the file: your secretary, legal documents

7) the view: the committee, the lake

8) the head: the cat, the queue

9) the arm: the chair, John

10) the story: Helen, the Civil War

11) the bed: the stream, the patient

12) the coat: the witness, snow

13) the atmosphere: the earth, mutual trust

14) the family: languages, my friend

15) the house: cards, my uncle Sam and aunt Grace

Exercise 3.3. Use ’s or s’ with these nouns where possible. Make up sentences with these word combinations.

1) a delay of an hour	14) the new manager of the company
2) a journey of two days	15) the car of Mike's parents
3) the shade of the tree	16) the birthday of my father
4) the book of the film	17) the toys of the children
5) the inside of the box	18) the results of the football match
6) the price of the success	19) the new manager of the school
7) work of seven days	20) the War of a Hundred Years
8) the surface of the earth	21) the work of a whole day
9) an absence of a year	22) in the time of a week or two
10) the top of the page	23) the second meeting of the committee
11) the eyes of the cat	24) the climate of Scotland
12) the daughter of Charles	25) the oldest mountains in the world
13) the name of the street

Exercise 3.4. Combine the following words combinations, using ’s or an of-group.

Model: the club – its monthly meeting --- the club’s monthly meeting

1) the club – its monthly meeting	16) the French Revolution – its results
2) his parents – their car	17) the patients – their complaints
3) the world – its end	18) one of our teachers at college – her house
4) the trees – the highest branches	19) the judge – his opinion
5) the bank – its branch in Paris	20) Keats – a copy of his poetry
6) my family – its name	21) the box – its bottom
7) my suitcase – its lock	22) the committee – its decision
8) the town – its atmosphere	23) Mary and James – their cars
9) your office – its floor	24) those people we met in Spain – their address
10) our company – its best sales manager	25) London – its museums
11) next week – its timetable	26) the government – their intentions
12) the police force – its main problem	27) former president John F. Kennedy – his brother
13) last night – its party	28) children – for their sake
14) today – its news	29) the man in the corner – his dog
15) your test – its results	30) sheep – their wool

Exercise 3.5. If you want to buy some food you go to the grocer’s. Where do you go if you want to do the following?

1) have you teeth examined – go to the __________	6) buy some meat – go to the __________
2) have your eyes examined – go to the _________	7) get you hair cut – go to the __________
3) buy some medicine – go to the __________	8) buy some flowers – go to the __________
4) buy some screws and nails – go to the _________	9) have clothes cleaned – go to the __________
5) buy some vegetables – go to the __________	10) buy a newspaper – go to the __________

Exercise 3.6. Answer the questions, using the possessive case of the nouns.

1. Where do you buy bread, milk and meat?	6. Where can you have your hair cut and made?
2. Where can you have your watch repaired?	7. Where can you buy cigarettes?
3. Where can you have your dress made?	8. Where can you buy sweets and cookies?
4. Where can you order a new suit?	9. Where can you find out about your holidays?
5. Where can you have your prescription made?	10. Where can you buy cakes and biscuits?

Miscellaneous Practice.

Exercise 1. Choose one expression from each pair to fill in the blanks in the verse from a greeting card.

(Life’s troubles/ Troubles of life) can sometimes leave us with a frown,

And the (each day’s worries/ worries of each day) can get us down;

But this (morning special of news/ morning’s special news) is here

To make all the (world’s problems/ problems of the world) disappear;

Because of one (love’s woman/ woman’s love), we can say

Thanks and best wishes to you on this (Mother Day/ Mother’s Day).

Exercise 2. Correct any possible mistakes in the following sentences.

1. There was a chair near the library’s secretary desk.

2. Mr. Brown was satisfied with the results of Tom and Nick’s visit.

3. I think we ought to drink dear James’ health, and the health of Charles’ wife.

4. I’m not good at other peoples’ affairs.

5. They had found refreshments over the way at Brown’s and Smith’s.

6. I’m really fed up with my landlord’s wife’s complaints about noise.

7. My brother’s-in-law parents have decided to emigrate.

8. It’s not my bag, it’s somebody else.

9. There was a two minute’s wait while the computer started.

10. Janice decided to open a shop specializing in childrens’ clothes.

Exercise 3. Translate the following word combinations into English.

1) сад моей свекрови	13) речь королевы Елизаветы II
2) кабинет главнокомандующего	14) подпись главного редактора
3) адрес родителей моего друга	15) дно бутылки
4) форма пожарных	16) женская и мужская обувь
5) описание эксперимента	17) получасовoй перерыв
6) пятичасовой полет	18) работа стюардессы
7) жены Генриха VIII	19) родительское собрание
8) проблема кого-то еще	20) полуторачасовое ожидание
9) вчерашняя газета	21) пятнадцатиминутная прогулка
10) двухнедельное путешествие	22) теорема Пифагора
11) семичасовой рабочий день	23) сторона дома
12) братья Джона Брауна и Теда Смита	24) середина дороги

4. Nouns in the Possessive Case and Compound Nouns

Exercise 4.1. Study the rule.

Compound nouns are nouns which have been created by combining two or more nouns which are related to each other.

Compound nouns are similar in meaning to possessives because the first noun classifies the second noun, it describes it or tells us its purpose.

e.g. a shoe shop, a fashion magazine, an address book, a sports car

A compound noun may consist of two or three words that function like one word.

Compound nouns can be formed:

by combining two nouns e.g. a cookery book, a computer game
by combining an adjective and a noun e.g. fast food, first aid
by combining a verb and an adverb e.g. breakup, checkout
by combining a numeral and a noun e.g. a fifty-dollar dress, a two-hour trip

Compound nouns can be written:

as a single word e.g. a dressmaker, a babysitter
as two separate words e.g. mother tongue, youth hostel
as two words joined by a hyphen e.g. a waste-bin, a one-parent family

Practice Activities.

Exercise 4.2. Study the ways in which compound nouns can be made and translate the nouns.

Some ways in which compound nouns can be used:

when the second noun belongs to or is part of the first

e.g. shop window, church bell, picture frame, garden gate, college library

the first noun can indicate the location of the second

e.g. city street, corner shop, country lane, street market

the first noun can state the material of which the second is made

e.g. steel door, stone wall, rope ladder, silk blouse, iron gate

the first word can indicate the purpose of the second

e.g. coffee cup, escape hatch, notice board, tin opener, golf club

these combinations are often used of occupations, sports, hobbies and people who practise them

e.g. football match, sheep farmer, water skier, pop singer, tennis tournament, beauty contest

the first noun can show what the second is about or concerned with

e.g. A work of fiction can be a detective/ murder/ mystery/ ghost/ horror/ spy story.

We buy bus/ train/ plane tickets.

We pay fuel/ laundry/ milk/ telephone bills;

entry visa, income tax, car insurance, parking fines.

Exercise 4.3. Choose the correct noun group and account for its usage.

1) a pilot’s seat – a pilot seat	14) the car’s previous owner – the car previous owner
2) travelers’ cheques – travelers cheques	15) the firm's office – the firm office
3) a leather’s wallet – a leather wallet	16) a street's lamp – a street lamp
4) a man’s voice – a man voice	17) a cowboy's film – a cowboy film
5) a fashion’s magazine – a fashion magazine	18) vegetable's salad – vegetable salad
6) a bus's station – a bus station	19) China's history – China history
7) a toy's shop – a toy shop	20) a telephone's box –a telephone box
8) this morning’s newspaper – this morning newspaper	21) a horse's race – a horse race
9) the teachers' office – the teacher office	22) a car's mechanic – a car mechanic
10) the computer's disk – the computer disk	23) the earth’s gravity – the earth gravity
11) my mother's chair – my mother chair	24) army’s officers – army officers
12) the paper's editor – the paper editor	25) mountain’s plants – mountain plants
13) a bath's towel – a bath towel

Exercise 4.4. Supply a phrase with ’s or a compound noun in place of the phrase in italics.

1. It's the idea of the manager.	16. Where is the surgery of the doctor?
2. Don't damage the nib of the pen.	17. It's the keyboard of the computer.
3. I've cleaned the top of the desk.	18. It was in the reign of King John.
4. Do you like the poetry of Keats?	19. It's the responsibility of somebody else.
5. Look at the handle of the suitcase.	20. Polish the knob of the front door.
6. The journey of Scott is historic.	21. Who stole the bicycle of the postman?
7. Put out the stub of that cigarette.	22. I spoke to the secretary of the boss.
8. We've got a new table in the kitchen.	23. Please clean the switches of the lights.
9. This is the new policy of the government.	24. The cover of the book is torn.
10. He's the son of Mr. Jones.	25. The gate of the factory was shut.
11. Please open the door of the garage.	26. I've lost the photo of the children.
12. The critic of the film was wrong.	27. The phone in the office is out of order.
13. These are shoes used for dancing.	28. The surface of the road is slippery.
14. Who's the mother of the twins?	29. I need a new lamp for reading.
15. Don't pull the tail of the horse.	30. Let’s go to the shop that sells clothes

Exercise 4.5. Match the following parts of compound nouns and then fill in the blanks in the sentences using the most appropriate compound.

1) trial

2) zebra

3) fire

4) sales

5) pocket

6) mirror

7) burglar

8) sports

9) junk

10) blood

a) representative

b) image

c) money

d) alarm

e) food

f) equipment

g) brigade

h) pressure

i) crossing

j) run

1. They should put a __________ outside school so that children don’t get run over.

2. Is the __________ you get from your parents enough for your need?

3. Can you send the __________ quickly – the house next door is on fire.

4. After the last break-in, they decided to get a __________ installed.

5. The nurse will take your __________ in a moment.

6. I can’t get the children to eat anything except __________.

7. We’re holding a tournament in the ice-hockey stadium, a __________ for the next year’s Winter Olympics.

8. A __________ travels to different places trying to persuade people to buy various goods.

9. The children’s bedrooms are __________ of each other.

10. They sell mainly __________.

Exercise 4.6. What do you call __________?

1) a shelf for books	11) a dress that costs $80
2) a test to detect drugs	12) a building of 9 storeys
3) a flight lasting two hours	13) the price of success
4) pudding made of rice	14) work of seven years
5) wool from a lamb	15) the surface of the earth
6) a headline in a newspaper	16) a ruler 20 inches long
7) a request for help	17) a child who is five years old
8) the uniform worn by a nurse	18) clothes worn by children
9) insurance for a car	19) a book which contains 100 pages
10) the wheel of a bicycle	20) a degree you get at university

Miscellaneous Practice.

Exercise 1. Choose the correct answer.

1. I was surprised by the announcement of yesterday/ yesterday’s announcement.

2. They left their home because of the extension of the airport/ the airport’s extension.

3. The guitar playing of David/ David’s guitar playing has improved enormously.

4. The completion of the road/ the road’s completion was ahead of schedule.

5. At the supermarket, I found I’d brought the shopping list of last week/ last week’s shopping list.

6. It’s the responsibility of the firm that built the houses/ the firm that built the houses’ responsibility.

7. Britain export/ Britain’s export to the United States has fallen recently.

8. That isn’t much use; it’s the calendar of last year/ last year’s calendar.

9. I was shocked by the opinion of Alice/ Alice’s opinion.

10. He gently pattered the shoulder of his brother/ his brother’s shoulder.

11. He’s a friend of a man I know at work/ a man I know at work’s friend.

12. The evacuation of the building/ the building’s evacuation took only 10 minutes.

13. Last week storm/ last week’s storm caused a lot of damage.

14. The only cinema of the town/ the town’s only cinema has been closed down.

15. There will be a big crowd at the football match of this evening/ at this evening’s football match.

Exercise 2. Rewrite the sentences using the possessive case of the nouns.

1. The stories Steve told and the stories Jane told were completely different.

2. I’m sure this bag doesn’t belong to him, it belongs to somebody else.

3. Let’s go to the shop that the girls own.

4. That is the hotel belonging to Mr. Hollis.

5. It’s the fault of nobody.

6. They had respect for the opinions of each other.

7. The dog belonging to the son of my next-door neighbour never stops barking.

8. I’m fed up with the hopeless inefficiency of the secretary of my boss.

9. The personality of my father and the personality of my mother are very much alike.

10. The new Act of Parliament will protect the right of everyone to privacy.

11. The changing room for men is over there on the right.

12. I’ve just inherited the house belonging to the brother of my grandmother.

13. The opinions of the poor residents are rarely taken into consideration.

14. The dance routines of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers are legendary.

15. She has been put in charge of the activities of children at the summer camp in Maine.

Exercise 3. Some of the sentences contain mistakes. Underline the mistakes and then correct them.

1. When the teacher had called out the girl’s names, they all stepped forward.

2. We had to study Charles Dicken’s early novels at school.

3. There were hundreds of birds nests in the tree.

4. They are my mother-in-law’s favourite sweets.

5. I took the book to Lewis’ house yesterday.

6. If they had been anyone’s else paintings I wouldn’t have gone to the exhibition.

7. The world airlines are moving towards a total ban on smoking.

8. The readers letters page in the newspaper is full of complaints about the article.

9. We had a two weeks holiday in Spain.

10. I’m sure you know far more than they do about their country history.

Revision.

Exercise 1. Study the information below and write the number of appropriate examples in the spaces below.

1. We sometimes just add an apostrophe to a singular noun ending in -s, especially in classical reference. ( )

2. We can add ’s or ’ to a whole phrase. ( )

3. The ’s structure is often used for products from living animals. ( )

4. When we talk about one lot of things, we add ’s to the last word of the combination. ( )

5. The ’s (s’) structure is often used to say how long things last. ( )

a) John and Ann’s children

b) a day’s journey

c) the man next door’s wife

d) five days’ course

e) Socrates’ ideas

f) a hen’s egg

g) Pythagoras’ theorem

h) my uncle and aunt’s house

i) Henry the Eighth’s wives

j) Tom and Nick’s visit

k) Moses’ journey

Exercise 2. Make up word combinations using the Possessive Case structure.

1. the cheques of travelers	14. the changing room for men
2. the decision of the authorities	15. the opinions of the poor residents
3. a course that lasts three months	16. the dance routines of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers
4. a shop of the florist	17. the dog belonging to the son of my next-door neighbour
5. the main export of Norway	18. the advice of somebody else
6. the reign of Elizabeth the First	19. the climate of Great Britain
7. a rest of a couple of days	20. the signature of the boss
8. the War of Seven Years	21. the books that belong to the children
9. bananas worth of five dollars	22. a lesson that lasts forty-five minutes
10. the garden of their grandparents	23. a nest where birds live
11. the jokes told by Mary and Jane	24. an egg that a hen hatches
12. the shop that the women own	25. the office where the editor-in-chief works
13. the opinions of each other

Exercise 3. Some of the sentences contain mistakes. Underline the mistakes and then correct them.

1. In his fifteen-minutes speech he emphasized the importance of attracting industry to the town.

2. It’s reported that the custom’s officers foiled an attempt to smuggle the painting out of the country.

3. Before boarding the ship we have to go through customs and passport’s control.

4. She set out the company aims and objectives in her speech.

5. The residents are anxiously awaiting the local authorities decision.

6. The majority of teachers approve of a test at the end of a six-month course.

7. The hotel is within a stone’s throw of the beach.

8. I’m really at my wit’s end and don’t know what to do next.

9. The contents of the boy’s wardrobe were thoroughly examined though they strongly protested.

10. The committee’s second meeting was put off till Friday.

11. He keeps all his clients at arms’ length.

12. We had a nice time at John and Susan last night.

13. At the end of the five-day's trial, he was found guilty and sent to prison.

14. To get married before you are eighteen, you’ll need your parents approval and consent.

15. I'll see you at the tomorrow's meeting.

Exercise 4. Put the words into the plural form, read and translate them.

Hypothesis, datum, formula, analysis, takeoff, kimono, editor-in-chief, casino, calf, offspring, species, bridge, aircraft, synthesis, medium, terminus, archipelago, watch, volcano, salmon, sheaf, wharf, man-of-war, set-to, man-hole, criterion, church, ox, cactus, handful, tornado, mackerel, oasis, safe, woman-hater, good-for-nothing, lean-to, zero, thief, motto, works, louse, man-eater, grown-up, dwarf, series, hair-do, beach, bench, loaf, phenomenon, bamboo, holdall, merry-go-round, curriculum, hovercraft, life, concerto, tooth, belief, pick-pocket, Mr., cod, match, torpedo, antenna.

Exercise 5. Translate the words in brackets from Russian into English. Add articles where necessary.

1. Homework should not be used as (средство)__________ of controlling children.

2. He was surrounded by a crowd of friends and (приспешников)__________.

3. From 1960 to 1965 the Soviets launched twenty-six (космическихкораблей)__________ into deep space.

4. It’s a well-known fact that oil found in (лососе, сардинахискумбрии)__________ can stop the weight loss.

5. The cat jumped to the floor, darted through the legs of several (прохожих)__________, and disappeared into the bar.

5. To qualify for a grant, students must satisfy certain (критериям)__________.

6. We have to learn all the relevant chemical (формулы)__________.

7. He saw a young mother trying to control her two (отпрысков)__________.

8. It is a perfect location for (кактусов)__________.

9. The police are investigating (серию)__________ of attacks in the area.

10. The giant panda is (редкийвид)__________.

11. The final cost could be as much as two (миллиарда)__________ dollars.

12. What is the white (грибок)__________ on the roots of the plant?

13. It smells like the braided (буханки)__________ fresh from the baker's oven.

14. The brick (завод)__________ closed last year.

Exercise 6. Translate the following sentences into English.

1. Ее кукольное личико выражало удивление.

2. Он прошел через комнату секретарши, не взглянув на нее.

3. Я провела неделю в гостях у подруги моей свекрови.

4. Женский голос позади меня тихо произнес чье-то имя.

5. Это было решение мудрого человека.

6. Они увидели шестифутовую дыру в стене.

7. В сегодняшней вечерней газете есть статья Питера на эту тему.

8. Наступило минутное молчание.

9. До его работы было несколько минут ходьбы.

10. Двухметровый забор отделяет участок мистера Симса от нашего.

11. Фильм рассказывает о карьере актрисы.

12. Десятичасовой полет был очень утомительным.

13. Полицейский записал имена всех свидетелей.

14. Поведение Стива и Джона постыдно.

15. Дом Смитов находится в двух шагах от дома моей свекрови.

16. В моем кошельке было две пятидолларовые банкноты.

17. На обед подали куриный суп, рисовый пудинг и вишневый пирог.

18. Они устраивали пятнадцатиминутный перерыв каждый час.

19. На этом заводе производят пятитонные грузовики.

20. В подарок она получила кукольный домик и книгу сказок.

21. Он никогда не пропускает шестичасовые новости.

22. Козье молоко полезно для здоровья.

23. Это любимая передача моей тещи.

24. Никто не может обсуждать приказ главнокомандующего.

25. Во времена правления королевы Елизаветы Англия посылала исследователей во многие страны.