English is so simple - 6

Noun – Case

A noun (or pronoun) is said to be in the nominative case if it is used as the subject of a verb. The subject is that part of the sentence which contains the person or thing we are speaking about. For example, in

The batsman scored more than 10,000 runs.

We have the batsman as the subject. Hence, batsman is in the nominative case. You can find the nominative case if you put “who?” or “what?” before the verb.

A noun (or pronoun) is said to be in the accusative case if it is used as the object of a verb. The accusative case is also known as the objective case. It can be found if you put “whom?” or “what?” after the subject and the verb. In the above example, runs is in the objective case.

Let us take one more example.

1.      The cat killed the mouse.

In (1), if we ask Who killed (verb)?, the answer is cat. So, cat is in the nominative case.

If we ask The cat killed what? or, more refinedly, what did the cat kill?, the answer is mouse. So, mouse is in the accusative case.

A noun is said to be possessive case if it denotes possession, authorship, origin, kind. It answers the question whose? The possessive case is also known as the genitive case. Look at the following examples:

The museum houses Mahatma Gandhi;s watch. (Whose watch?)

Elkazi’s group is staging O’Neik’s plays. (Whose group?, whose plays)

How is POSSESSIVE CASE formed?

1.      By adding ’s to a singular noun. Ex: minister’s, saint’s.

2.      By adding only an apostrophe (‘) to a singular noun when there are too many hissing sounds. Ex: Moses’s laws, for goodness’ sake, for justice’ sake.

3.      By adding apostrophe to plural nouns ending in s. Ex: stewards’, pilgrims’.

4.      By adding ‘s to plural nouns not ending in s. Ex: children’s, women’s.

Rule: When a noun consists of several words, the possessive sign is attached only to the last word.

Incorrect: The Queen’s of England reaction was important in the Diana episode.

Do not get mistaken that since it is the Queen’s reaction, the ‘s should come after Queen. You might think that putting it after England would make the reaction England’s and not the Queen’s. this is short-sightedness. Do not see Queen and England in isolation. Queen of England is one whole and the apostrophe should come at its end. So,

Correct: The Queen of England’s reaction was important in the Diana episode.

Rule: When two nouns are in apposition, the possessive sign is put to the later only.

What is noun in apposition? When one noun follows another to describe it, the noun which follows is said to be in apposition to the noun which comes before it. Both the nouns are in the same case. In

            Stephen Hawking, the scientist, has written A Brief History of Time.

the noun scientist is in apposition to the noun Stephen Hawking. Now, here is a sample of incorrect and correct sentences if you are going to Hawking’s country.

Incorrect: I am going to Stephen Hawking’s the scientist’s country.

Correct: I am going to Stephen Hawking the scientist’s country.

Rule: When two or more nouns show joint possession, the possessive sign is put to the latter only.

Incorrect: Amitabh and Ajitabh are Bachchanji’s sons. So Bachchanji is Amitabh’s and Ajitabh’s father.

The above grammatical usage would tantamount to there being two fathers (see next rule). This would lead to confusion. The first sentence categorilly says that they are sons of the same father. So,

Correct: So Bachchanji is Amitabh’s and Ajitabh’s father.

Rule: Each of the two or more connected nouns implying separate possessions must take the possessive sign.

Incorrect: The audience listened to Javed and Vajpayee’s poems.

Now, Javed and Vajpayee do not write poems together. The above usage would have been correct if used for Javed and Salim’s script because the Salim-Javed duo jointly wrote the scripts (see previous rule). Here, however, the authorship being different, we have

Correct: The audience listened to Javed’s and Vajpayee’s poems.

Rule: The possessive case is chiefly used with the names of living things.

Incorrect: The cart’s wheel was broken.

The cart is not a living thing. So the possessive case should not be used here.

Correct: The wheel of the cart was broken.

Rule: The possessive is also used with nouns denoting time, space or weight.

Incorrect: His house is at the throw of a stone from here.

The correct expression is a stone’s throw. Though the stone is not living thing, the possessive is used because the phrase denotes distance. The phrase means that the place is so near that if you throw a stone from here, it will reach there. Figuratively used, a stone’s throw from here.

Correct: His house is at a stone’s throw from here.

Compiled By: Chaudhary Amit V.

Post Credit: (Books: English Made Easy)