Compound Possessive Pronoun Strings, or Who Owns that Dog, Anyway?
In the last post, we discussed compound pronoun strings, such as you and I and you and me. Today we are going to throw possession and nouns into the mix. For example, is Windy Doug and my dog, Doug’s and my dog, or Doug and I’s dog? Before we investigate this intriguing question of canine custody, let’s review the general rules for regular possession: Rule 1: If ownership is shared, attach an apostrophe s to the final possessive noun: Bart and Lisa’s little sister Maggie shot Mr. Burns. (Maggie is the sister of both Bart and Lisa.) Rule 2: If ownership is not shared, attach an apostrophe s to each possessive noun: Puddy fixed Jerry’s and George’s cars. (Jerry and George own separate cars.) While these rules are applicable to...
Read MoreYou and I versus You and Me: Can’t We All Just Get Along?
My good friend Lisa challenged me to tackle the conflict between first person pronouns within compound subject and object strings such as you and I versus you and me. Because I hate to see strife between perfectly decent pronouns, I gladly accept this challenge! Technically, correct usage is determined by the pronoun’s position as a subject (I) or object (me) in the sentence. However, here is a quick tip: Just eliminate the other person. I know, I know, eliminating people sounds so rude! But don’t worry, we can welcome these poor individuals back into our sentences as soon as we decide if we are an I or a me. First, let’s look at an example with two pronouns: 1. You and me went to the store. 2. You and I went to the store. By removing you,...
Read More
