A Friend of Jims

A Friend of Jims A Friend of Jims A Friend of Jims By Maeve Maddox Theo Smith writes: I am often frustrated by what I call a double possessive. We seem to say and write friends of Jims not friends of Jim when the item possessed   is stated before that which possesses it. But when the possessor is identified first, we say, for example, Jims friends. Whats up with this? The double possessive appears in that of indicates possession and so does the apostrophe s (s) appended to the possessor. What can you tell me about this?    This double genitive construction includes both a friend of Jims and a friend of his. Its one of those English idioms that tries the souls of logic lovers, but it has been in the language for a very long time because it works. The double genitive makes it possible to distinguish between definiteness and indefiniteness. It also eliminates ambiguity. For example, theres a distinct difference of meaning between the following phrases: a photo of Daniel a photo of Daniels Although in use since Chaucers time or before, the double genitive attracted the attention of 18th century grammarians; their disapproval did nothing to stamp it out. Modern style manuals offer guidelines. According to the Chicago Manual of Style, The possessive form may be preceded by of where one of several is implied. â€Å"A friend of Dick’s† and â€Å"a friend of his† are equally acceptable. 7.29 The AP Style Book goes into more detail: DOUBLE POSSESSIVE: Two conditions must apply for a double possessivea phrase such as a friend of Johnsto occur: The word after of must refer to an animate object, and The word before of must involve only a portion of the animate objects possessions. Otherwise, do not use the possessive form of the word after of: The friends of John Adams mourned his death. (All the friends were involved.) He is a friend of the college. (Not colleges because college is inanimate). For a linguists take on the double genitive, read Mark Libermans Genitive Anxiety. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:75 Contronyms (Words with Contradictory Meanings)"Confused With" and "Confused About"7 Sound Techniques for Effective Writing