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§1. THE CASE OF NOUNS.

One of the grammatical categories of nouns is case.

Case is the form of the noun built up by means of ending, which shows the relation of the noun
to the other words in the sentence.
English nouns have TWO case forms – the common case & the possessive case (the genitive
case).

IT’S CURIOUS. In the earlier stages English had a more developed system of
cases. In Old English there were the following four cases: nominative, genitive,
dative and accusative. When a noun was used a subjected of a sentence, it was
in the nominative case, the indirect object was in the dative; certain adverbial
relations were indicated by means of the accusative case, while others required
the genitive. But in the course of time the original nominative, dative and
accusative merged into one form with no ending, the common case, except
some pronouns which have still preserved distinct forms for nominative and
objective. In Modern English there are two cases left and some of the meanings
expressed in other languages by means of cases are rendered with the help of
prepositions and the fixed word order.

Nouns in the common case in English are characterized by no ending.

e.g. a girl, a boy, a garden, a tree, etc.
The common case of nouns has a very general and indefinite meaning. The noun in the common
case may have various functions in the sentence, which are defined syntactically by means of word
order and prepositions.
Here are the main examples of case-relations expressed by means of prepositions in English.

Russian Preposition English

Именительный падеж – This boy reads well.
(кто? что?) The lesson begins at 9 o'clock.
Родительный падеж of The book of the librarian is on the table.
(кого? чего?)
Дательный падеж to He gave this book to Mary.
(кому? чему?)
Винительный падеж – The teacher asked the boy many questions.
(кого? что?) This article is written by the professor.
Творительный падеж by I write with a fountain-pen.
(кем? чем?) with I'm fond of reading about animals.
Предложный падеж about She spoke of art, literature and music.
(о ком? о чем?) of

§2. THE POSSESSIVE CASE.

§2.1 The possessive case represents in Modern English the Old English genitive case but it is
much narrower in its meaning and function and cannot render all the meanings of the genitive case.
The possessive case expresses possession with various shades of meaning depending on the
lexical meaning of the words & restricted chiefly to nouns denoting living beings. Its syntactical
function is exclusively that of an attribute.
e.g. The teacher’s desk is in the middle of the class-room.
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With nouns denoting inanimate things and abstract nouns the possessive case relation is
rendered by the of-phrase.
e.g. The roof of this house is new.

The possessive case is formed by means of the suffix –‘s or the apostrophe –‘ alone.
The suffix –‘s is pronounced:
[z] after voiced consonants and vowels: girl’s, boy’s;
[s] after voiceless consonants: student’s, wife’s;
[iz] after sibilants: prince’s, judge’s.

The noun in the possessive case precedes the noun which it modifies.
e.g. the child’s toys –игрушки ребенка

§ 2.2. The possessive case suffix –‘s is added:

1) to the stem of the noun in the singular;

e.g. the pupil’s exercise
the actress’s voice
the child’s mother
2) to the stem of plural nouns not ending in – S;
e.g. men’s work
women’s clothes
children’s room
3) proper names ending in – s can take –‘s or the apostrophe alone –‘;
e.g. Mr. Jones’s / Mr. Jones’ house
Yeats’s / Yeats’ poems
In both cases suffix is pronounced [iz].
4) with compounds, the last word takes the –‘s;
e.g. his sister-in-law’s car
her mother-in-law’s jewellery
the editor-in-chief’s orders
5) names consisting of several words also take the –‘s;
e.g. Henry the Eighth’s wives;
the Prince of Wales’s helicopter
6) –‘s can be added to the initials;
e.g. the VIP’s escort
the MP’s decision

§ 2.3. The apostrophe –‘ alone is added to:

1) plural nouns ending in – s;

e.g. the students’ hostel
the eagles’ nest
2) Classical proper names;
e.g. Pythagoras’ Theorem
Archimedes’ Law
Sophocles’ Plays

§3. THE USE OF THE POSSESSIVE CASE

§3.1. The possessive case is mainly used with nouns denoting living beings (people, animals).
e.g. a woman’s intuition
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the people’s choice
the crew’s quarters

§3.2. In the following instances the possessive case may be used with names denoting inanimate
nouns (lifeless things):
1) with nouns expressing time or distance;
e.g. a few days’ trip
a mile’s distance
a moment’s pause

2) with the geographical notions (town, city, country, river, water, ocean, world);
e.g. Europe’s future
the island’s outline
Russia’s exports
3) with ships and boats;
e.g. the ship’s bell
the yacht’s mast
4) with planes, trains, cars and other vehicles
! (though here the of construction is better);
e.g. the train’s heating system or the heating system of the train

5) in expressions of money + worth;

e.g. ten roubles’ worth of stamp
thirty thousand pounds’ worth of jewellery
6) with for + noun + sake;
e.g. for his mother’s sake
for her family’s sake
7) in set-expressions;
! REMEMBER THEM

A stone’s throw
For pity’s sake
At death’s door
To one’s heart’s content
At one’s wit’s end
At one’s finger’s ends
To a hair’s breadth
Out of harm’s way
For old acquaintance’s sake
For appearance’s sake
A pin’s head
The needle’s eye/point
For goodness’ sake
For heaven’s sake
In one’s mind’s eye
Duty’s call

8) with the names of newspapers and nouns denoting different kinds of organizations;
e.g. the Tribune’s role
the government’s policy
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the party’s appeal

9) sometimes with names of seasons, months, days when they are personified;
e.g. today’s newspaper
a winter’s day or winter day
Autumn’s return
§3.3. OF + noun is used for possessions:

1) with inanimate nouns, except those listed above in § 3.2.;

e.g. the walls of the room
the roof of the house
the handle of the door

However, it is often possible to replace

noun X + of + noun Y by noun Y + noun X in that order:
e.g. the town walls
the house roof
the door handle
The first noun becomes a sort of adjective and is not made plural.
e.g. the roofs of the houses = the house roofs

2) when the “possessor” noun is followed by a phrase or a clause;

e.g. I took the advice of a couple I met on the train and hired a car.
She is the sister of the girl with whom we were at school together.

§4.SOME SPECIAL CASES OF THE POSSESSIVE CASE.

§4.1. “GROUP - POSSESSIVE”.

The possessive case suffix –‘s/ –‘ may be added not only to a single noun but to a whole group of
words. It’s called “group-possessive”. We find various patterns here:
e.g. Smith and Brown’s office
Jack and Ann’s children
(two people possess something in common)
the Prime Minister of England’s residence
the Prince of Denmark’s tragedy
(the residence is not of England but of the Prime Minister)
(the tragedy is not of Denmark but of the Prince)
somebody else’s umbrella
an hour or two’s time
(in these examples the last element of the group is not a noun)
the man we saw yesterday’s son
(this example can puzzle anybody but the fact is the son belongs to the man but not to yesterday)

§4.2. THE ABSOLUTE POSSESSIVE.

1. If the noun which is modified by the possessive case has already been mentioned and is clear
from the text, it may be omitted to avoid repetition.
e.g. It was not John’s brother, but Mary’s.
I heard a voice; it was my brother’s.
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2. The noun modified by the possessive case is also often omitted when it denotes place (house,
shop, cathedral, etc) or institutions, where the possessive is usually a saint’s name.
e.g. I saw him at my father’s (house).
Go to the baker’s (shop).
You can buy it at the chemist’s (shop).
We had lunch at Bill’s (place).
They went to St. Paul’s (Cathedral).
The ceremony took place at St. James’s (palace).
Names of the owners of some businesses can be used similarly.
e.g. Sotheby’s
Claridge’s

§4.3. THE COMBINATION “OF + POSSESSIVE”.

The combination “of + possessive case” (a friend of my brother’s) or “of + possessive pronoun”
(a friend of mine) has usually a partitive meaning, denoting “one of …..” .
e.g. He is an old friend of my father’s.
(Он один из старых друзей моего отца.)

But sometimes the partitive meaning is lost and the construction acquires emotional force (denoting
praise, pleasure, displeasure, etc.) or becomes purely descriptive.
e.g. We all admired that clever remark of your father’s.
That cottage of my friend’s is surrounded by a beautiful orchard.

§4.4. A POSSESSIVE GOVERNING ANOTHER POSSESSIVE

If a possessive governs another possessive, as we see in Russian in: комната жены моего
брата, the former is expressed in English by the of-phrase, the latter by the possessive case.
e.g. The room of my brother's wife.
The wedding of Brown's sister.

The use of the possessive of both nouns is rare:

Scrooge's niece's sister... expressed the same opinion. (Dickens.) My son's wife's family are
old people.

§ 5. THE USE OF ARTICLES AND ATTRIBUTES WITH NOUNS IN THE

POSSESSIVE CASE

When the Possessive is used in the meaning of belonging (possession), all that stands
before the possessive noun refers to this noun (and not to the following head noun): "the young
man's companion" denotes that the man is young (not his companion); "some child's cries" = "the
cries of some child" (not "some cries"). Whatever refers to the head noun, must be placed after the
possessive: "the man's young companion" denotes "the young companion', while "the" refers to
"man". Since no articles or pronouns can be used after a possessive form, an Absolute possessive is
used if we need some determiner before the head-noun: "a friend of Peter's", "that friend of Peter's",
"some friends of Peter's". That is also the reason why we say "Pushkin's' last poems", without an
article and with "last" placed after the possessive (otherwise "the" and last' would refer to the proper
name). Note "the great Pushkin's poems", where "the" and "great" both refer to the proper name (the
article appears due to the use of an attribute with the proper noun). Note also "yesterday's sad
news", where the absence of article is due to the peculiarities of the word 'yesterday'.
The picture is quite different when the possessive is used in its qualitative meaning. In this
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case all that stands before the possessive, refers to the following head noun (not to the possessive
noun): "a children's shop" = "a shop for children". This happens because 'children's' here is very
much like a qualitative adjective (cf. "a childish joke"). In this meaning no attribute can be placed
after the possessive; hence "a new children's shop" (= a new shop for children), where the article
and attribute both "jump over" the possessive noun to refer to the head word. Naturally, when the
article means "one", it refers to the possessive noun denoting a measure: "a mile’s distance" = one
mile's distance; "an hour’s work" = work for one hour. In all other cases the article refers to the
head noun, as does the attribute: "a pleasant two hours" walk" = a pleasant walk for two hours.
Sometimes, however, the homonymous character of such structures makes it difficult to determine
the precise relationship; thus, in "Now you must have a good night's sleep", the attribute 'good' may
be referred either to "sleep" or to "night".
The article in such phrases can also be omitted ("after two hours" walk"). Note also a
change of number forms in phrases like "a woman's hat" (= for a woman, i.e. for one woman) – but:
"two women's hats" (= two hats for women, not for one woman). As different from that, we say: "a
women's magazine" (for women as a class, not for one person as with personal belongings like
"hat", "coat"). In phrases like "goat's (cow's) milk" no article is used as no individual animal is
meant (the possible spelling is "cows" milk). On the other hand, in "a goat’s head appeared in the
window" we mean one particular individual animal ("the head of a goat"). Note also ambiguous
cases in "another woman's hat", which may mean either 'the hat belonging to another woman' or
"one more hat designed to be worn by a woman". In real speech such ambiguous phrases are usually
avoided, so there is no need to take great pains to analyse this.
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EXERCISES.

Exercise 1 . Your father's or mother's brother is called your uncle. What is the word for each of these?

your father's or mother's sister your brother's wife

your brother's or sister's son your uncle's wife
your uncle's son or daughter your sister's husband
your wife's or husband's father your son's wife
your brother's or sister's daughter

Prompts: aunt, uncle, niece, cousin, nephew, mother-in-law, father-in-law, daughter-in-law, sister-in-
law, grandson.

Exercise 2 . Complete the sentences with the possessive form of the nouns in parentheses.

1. (Mrs. Smith) Mrs. Smith’ s husband often gives her flowers.

2. (boy) The _____________________________ hat is red.
3. (boys) The ___________________________ hats are red.
4. (children) The _________________ toys are all over the floor.
5. (child) I fixed the _________________________ bicycle.
6. (baby) The _____________________ toys are in her crib.
7. (babies) The ___________________ toys are in their cribs.
8. (wives) Tom and Bob are married. Their _____________ names are Cindy and Jane, respectively.
9. (wife) That is my ___________________________ coat.
10. (Sally) _________________________ last name is White.
11. (Phyllis) _________________________ last name is Young.
12. (boss) That's my ____________________________ office.
13. (bosses) Those are my ________________________ offices.
14. (woman) This is a _____________________________ purse.
15. (women) That store sells _______________________ clothes.
16. (sister) Do you know my ____________________ husband?
17. (sisters) Do you know my ___________________ husbands?
18. (yesterday Did you read _____________________ newspaper?
19. (today) There are many problems in _____________ world.
20. (month) It would cost me a_____________________salary to buy that refrigerator.
Exercise 3. Join the two (or three) nouns. Use either -'s (-s1) or... of...

Model:
One can see the village from (the top/the mountain). – … the top of the mountain.
(The plan/these engineers) is quite original. – These engineers’ plan is…… .

1. I like (the bag/this woman). But it's very expensive.

2. There is something wrong with (the hands/the clock).
3. This is (the business/my father). He doesn't want me to interfere.
4. (The mayor/the town) meets reporters once a month.
5. (The house/our friends) is in the suburbs.
6. (The idea/the article) seems interesting to me. Do you want to discuss it?
7. (The aim/these men) is to get promotion. And they do their best to achieve it.
8. These are (the problems/Steve and James). Let them decide their problems themselves.
9. (The country house/the Blacks) is not very large.
10. He says (the cause/the fire) is carelessness.
11. The Bank of England is in (the centre/London)
12. That is (the book/ Bess). She needs it herself.
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13. (the computer/Fred Clark) is of the latest model.
14. Why do you want to put the table in (the middle/the room).
15. (The bicycle/those children) is very old. Still they enjoy riding it.
16. I am tired of (the initiatives/these people).Why don't they just do their work?
17. (The teacher/those students) has deep knowledge of the subject.
18. I don't think (The answer/this student) is above average.
19. This is (The tape/the cousin/Tom). I've got to return it.
20. Whose toys are these? • These are (the toys/the daughters/Mrs Black).

Exercise 4. Join two nouns to express possession. Sometimes you have to use an apostrophe (') with or
without s, sometimes you have to use the of-phrase.

Example: the door/the room – the door of the room

mother/Ann – Ann's mother

1) the daughter/Charles; 2) the camera/Kate; 3) the eyes/ the cat; 4) the top/the page; 5) the mate/
glasses; 6) the newspaper/yesterday; 7) the name/your wife; 8) the new manager/the company; 9) the
result/the football match; 10) the name/this street; 11) the car/Mike's parents; 12) the children/Don and Jane;
13) the birthday/my mother; 14) the new headmaster/the school; 15) the economic policy/the government;
16) the name/ the man I saw you with yesterday; 17) the husband/the woman talking to Max; 18) the
cottage/my aunt and uncle; 19) the ground floor/the building; 20) the garden/our neighbours; 21) the toys/the
children.

Exercise 5. Join the sentences using a possessive 's or s'.

Example:
The Dickenses have a house. It is very large. – The Dickenses' house is very large

1. My parents live on a farm. It's near the Canadian border. 2. Alice Benson has written a novel. It's
not very good. 3. Phil has a sports car. It can do 180 kph. 4. Mr. Brown uses a computer. It saves him a lot of
time. 5. Jake has got a new job. It seems to be very interesting. 6. The girls have music lessons. They're on
Mondays. 7. The management has made a new offer. It's too low, so we're going to strike. 8. The children
have got a room on the first floor. It's always in a mess. 9. My dentist has got a new receptionist. She's really
beautiful. 10. The dogs were barking last night. It woke me up.

Exercise 6. Paraphrase the following using the possessive case.

Example: the son of our manager – our manager’s son

A 1) the house of Mr. Smith; 2) a doll of the girls; 3) the works of Rembrandt; 4) a toy of the baby; 5) a
meeting of the employees; 6) the bags of those women; 7) the orders of our boss; 8) the books of the
children; 9) the cottage of my parents; 10) a garage of her cousin.
B 1) coal deposits of the world; 2) the influence of the sun; 3) the atmosphere of the earth; 4) the joys and
grieves of life; 5) the arrival of the ship; 6) icy mountains of Greenland; 7) the policy of the company; 8)
gold reserves of Ukraine; 9) the gravitation of the planet; 10) the decisions of the commission.
C 1) the mother of Kate and Mary; 2) the children of my aunt Ann; 3) the paintings of Picasso and Dali; 4)
the gun of the commander-in-chief; 5) the times of Ivan the Terrible; 6) the speech of the Minister of Foreign
Trade; 7) the correspondent of the Herald Tribune; 8) a flat of my father-in-law; 9) the wives of Henry the
Eighth; 10) oil wells of Saudi Arabia.
D 1) a cruise which lasts three weeks; 2) work which takes two hours; 3) a distance of five kilometres; 4) the
operation which lasted four hours; 5) the flight which took three hours; 6) a semester of eight weeks; 7) the
rest which lasted an hour; 8) a play of three acts; 9) a football match which lasts ninety minutes; 10) a
telephone conversation which lasts three minutes.

Exercise 7. Paraphrase the following using the possessive case.

Example:
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I must sleep 9 hours a day to feel well. – I must have nine-hours’ sleep to feel well.

1. Every day at noon we have a break, which lasts fifteen minutes. 2. I can’t understand why he is so tired.
The distance he covered is a mile only. 3. The walk to the station was short. It took us ten minutes. 4. Last
year we spent two weeks in Greece. The holiday was terrific. 5. If you want to get there, a trip will take you
only five hours. 6. Don’t take a training course that lasts a week. It won’t do you any good. 7. I slept only
five hours yesterday because my train came late. 8. Yesterday our lesson lasted thirty minutes because our
teacher was to leave at 12 o’clock. 9. If you want to have a voyage round Europe, you will need at least three
weeks. 10. My workweek lasts five days.

Exercise 8. Replace the nouns in the possessive case by the prepositional groups where possible.

Example:
He always takes his brothers’ books. – He always takes books of his brothers.

1. The only thing she wanted was to see her parents’ house again. 2. No one could explain the young girl’s
behaviour at yesterday’s supper. 3. Last Sunday’s rugby match was disappointing. Our team lost. 4. The boy
was looking through a children’s magazine. 5. After an hour’s break we resumed our work. 6. At that time he
lived in a little flat for economy’s sake. 7. It was four and a half hours’ ride. 8. I don’t like cow’s milk. 9. He
was puzzled by Ann and Peter’s visit. 10. When Friday came, he was at his wit’s ends. 11. She dropped in at
the chemist’s to buy some aspirin. 12. This is John’s coat, and that is Peter’s.

Exercise 9. Choose the singular or plural nouns from the given list and fill in the blanks using the
possessive forms.
holiday climate environment parks
cottage problems history rays
health teeth newspapers blues
wife name jobs car

Example: A ... home is his castle. – A man's home is his castle.

1. The child ... is in danger. 2. People ... are interesting to a writer. 3. A month ... is over. 4. Charles ...
was a film producer. 5. My sister-in-law ... is new. 6. Mike's parents ... is posh. 7. The hero ... is unknown. 8.
The Negroes ... are beautiful. 9. The sun ... are very strong in the South. 10. The patients ... are healthy. 11.
The school... is long. 12. The men ... are hard. 13. Today ... are full of interesting news. 14. The country... is
different. 15. The earth ... is in danger. 16. New York ... are dangerous at night.

Exercise 10 . Change each sentence into a new one using ‘s with the words given in the bold type.
Example:
The newspapers today are full of interesting news. – Today's newspapers are full of interesting news.

1. The meeting tomorrow has been cancelled. 2. Tourism is the main industry in the region. 3.
Exports from Britain to the United States have fallen recently. 4. The storm last week caused a lot of
damage. 5. There will be a big crowd at the football match this evening. 6. The only cinema in the town has
been closed down. 7. Crime is the product of social order in a country. 8. He was still thinking of the papers
to come next morning. 9. The oil riches in certain Arab states are known to all. 10. The relations between
the banks and industry in Germany have not always been conducive to success in export markets.

Exercise 11. Using the information given, make sentences with nouns denoting periods of time and
distance.

Example: My house is very near here.

It takes us only 5 minutes to get it. (walk).– So it's only 5 minute's walk far from here.

1. I went to sleep at 3 o'clock this morning and woke up an hour later at 4 o'clock, (sleep) 2. If I leave
my house at 9 o'clock and drive to London, I arrive at about 12 o'clock, (drive) 3. Carol is leaving on holiday
on the 13th. She has to come back at work on the 27th. (holiday) 4. If I leave my house at 8.50 and walk to
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work, I get to work at 9 o'clock, (walk) 5. I flew from Heathrow to Paris. The plane took off at 9 a.m. and
landed at 10 a.m. (flight) 6. The delegation arrived in Stockholm on the 5th and left it on the 8th. (visit) 7.
We started travelling round the region six days ago. Today we are coming back home. (trip) 8. They delayed
in the house for an instant and then they went at once to the river's edge to go aboard a steamer, (delay) 9.
Rex decided to walk to the railway station which was two miles far from the village, (walk) 10. That
morning he had already done a good work. It had taken him three hours, (work).

Exercise 12. Translate the following sentences into your own language. Mind the use of the possessive
case.
1. I spent Christmas at my aunt Emily's. 2. A man stepped out from a tobacconist's and waved to them,
and the car slid to the kerb and stopped. 3. "Where are the children?" - "I sent them to mother's." 4. Helen
was sitting on the veranda of Buckmaster's. 5. He lifted his strange lowering eyes to Derek's. 6. I want you to
go to the chemist's to buy some pills and shampoo. 7. Can I buy any posters at the bookseller's? 8. David
spent two weeks at Mr. Pegotty's in Yarmouth. 9. Five-star hotels provide the customers with cocktail
lounges, ballrooms, restaurants, beauty parlours, barber's and shoemaker's shops etc. 10. "Breakfast at
Tiffany's" is a novel by Truman Capote.

Exercise 13. Paraphrase the following set-phrases.

1. He was at his wit's end what to say. 2. There at last we could talk to our hearts' content. 3. For
Goodness' sake, try to keep out of harm's way. 4. Don't try to go into any debate with him: he always has all
the arguments at his fingers' ends. 5. The lion was now (within) a stone's throw from us.

Exercise 14. Comment on the use of the Absolute possessive case and translate from English into
Russian.

1. Is this your textbook or your teacher's? 2. We met just by chance at the hair-dresser's this morning.
3. Well, they say he's a nephew of Kaiser Wilhelm's. 4. There never was such an eye for carved stone as
Rodin's. 5. What do they sell at the green-grocer's and what at the ' haberdasher's? 6. Which room is your
brother-in-law's? 7. We had already met a few cousins of Jolion's earlier.

Exercise 15. Use the Absolute possessive.

1. The window of her room faces that of Peter's room. 2. Who did you hear that from? – Well, let's
say, from one of Jane's friends. 3. "I went to the butcher's shop this morning, to buy some meat. And the dog
disappeared." "Where?" "Just there, in the butcher's shop." 4. Suddenly he started twisting and wriggling,
and his body moved just like the body of a worm. 5. When did you last see that new friend of Peter? 6. We
are going to stay in the house of the Wiggins until Christmas. 7. His hands were as smooth and gentle as the
hands of a woman. 8. All those stories are written by Updike. 9. I saw her in one of the chain-stores of
Simons. 10. We bought these roses in a florist's shop in High street.

Exercise 16. Replace the of-phrases by the possessive where possible; comment on cases where it is not
possible.

1. We walked a little along the bank of the river. 2. Let's climb onto the roof of the house and lie in the
rays of the sun. 3. Would you like a cup of milk? 4. The school is at a distance of two miles from the Town
Hall. 5. The laming of animals requires great patience and self-possession. 6. How great is the population of
our country now? 7. What is the height of this old oak-tree? 8. We were rather tired after a walk for an hour.
9. There was a heap of books under the table. 30. The tides of the ocean are caused by the movement of the
Moon. 11. Corporal punishment of children has long been prohibited in schools. 12. We examined the places
of interest of London, which are near Trafalgar square. 13. Your treatment of my younger brother is
something shameful. 14. What will mankind do when the resources of the world are all exhausted? 15. Who
was the discoverer of the ancient Greek City of Troy in the 19th century?

Exercise 17. Paraphrase the possessive so as to explain its meaning and determine to which word the
dependent elements refer.
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a) 1. Those were the words of Young Jolion's father. 2. Those were the words of Jolion's old father. 3.
That was what Young Jolion's old father said to him. 4. He was capable of actions, which at the time, I
thought, were only a very young man's whims. 5. Such was the famous poet's motto. 6. Such was the poet's
famous motto. 7. What's this famous poet's best-known book? 8. Byron's great success came to him with his
first book. 9. The great Byron's success came to him with his first book. 10. I wish you had seen today's
magnificent sunrise! 11. The very last year's exams at college are called "finals". 12. We were discussing last
year's entrance exains. 13. This year's last exam will be in July.
b) 1. You need a baby's nursing-bottle for that. 2. He said more than I can bear to remember, even at
twenty years' distance. 3. He wore an elegant officer's uniform. 4. A big children's store has been built there.
5. I found my papers after a confused five minutes' search. 6. What a pretty child's cap! 7. They chose two
nice children's caps of the same colour for their baby-twins. 8. And now you have a good night's sleep. 9.
That's a popular children's song. 10. It is not just an hour's work, it is a good day's work. 11. This is a
labourer's shirt I got in Sardinia, 12. I'll return in a week's time. 13.1 wonder if you'll be back in two weeks'
time.

Exercise 18. Put the adjectives given in brackets in the right place.

Mike's brother (younger); a baby's pram (blue); my neighbour's help (new, unexpected); a woman's
dress (beautiful); the father's words (old, first); a children's song (well-known); the Prime Minister's arrival
(former, unexpected).

Exercise 19. Use the possessive instead of the "of-phrases" where possible.

1. I still remember the kind smile of my old teacher when he heard that. 2. She bought a pair of nice
new shoes for children. 3. The sociological ideas of Spencer are close to the 1859 work of Charles Darwin
"On the origin of species". 4. After waiting for two days he thought he had had enough. 5. We visited the
best-known museums of London. 6. The school was at a distance of a mile and a half (half a mile) from the
village. 7. The best minds of Russia have always stood up for democracy and human rights. 8. Here is the
new flat of my beloved ; mother-in-law. 9. How did you like the stormy meeting of yesterday? 10. There
were several nice caps for children and a dress for a woman on the counter. 11. She writes articles for a very
fashionable magazine for women. 12. "Yesterday" is probably the most popular song of the Beatles.

Exercise 20. Use the possessive instead of the of-phrases.

1. Her eyes are as green as the eyes of a cat. 2. After two weeks of rest we resumed our work. 3. The
order of the commander-in-chief was announced on the radio. 4. "This seems to be a wedding-ring usually
worn by a woman, not a man," the detective said. 5. One of the friends of my elder brother told us a funny
story the other day. 6. When we arrived, the elder brother of my friend Mary had already left. 7. The
gardener gathered and burned the dry leaves of last year. 8. I'll be seeing you in the house of my grandfather
tomorrow. 9. I hate that awful habit of my brother Peter to make fun of everybody. 10. I decided to stay for a
few more minutes for the sake of politeness. 11. This popular song of Chaikovsky is written on the lyrics of
the 19th century poet Maikov.

PRACTICE YOUR TRANSLATIONAL SKILLS.

Exercise 21. Translate the sentences given below into English. Mind the use of the possessive case.
1. Когда у твоей сестры день рождения?
2. Дети Бесс и Вильяма – студенты.
3. Идеи Чарльза кажутся мне интересными.
4. Отец Фрэнка сейчас в Англии.
5. Это кольцо бабушки Элис.
6. Нас удивляют результаты эксперимента.
7. Вы продаете детскую одежду?
8. Это машина наших родственников.
9. Фасад (the front) дома очень красивый.
10. Это коллекция его тестя.
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11. Зарплата этих полицейских довольно высокая.
12. Это портфели тех школьниц.
13. Это мнение моих учителей.
14. Мне не нравится ее новый цвет волос.
15. Покрой (the cut) костюма очень модный.
16. Сад Дэвидсонов очень красивый.
17. Эта коробка в углу комнаты.
18. Мне нравится прическа этой женщины.
19. Давайте заберемся на вершину горы завтра.
20. Эта компания отца Теда Майрса.

Exercise 22. Translate the sentences given below into English. Mind the use of the possessive case.
1. Мать Нины и Коли – официантка. 2. Ешьте фрукты вволю, они полезны для здоровья. 3. Я
ненавижу эту ужасную привычку Петра над всеми смеяться. 4. Когда мы пришли к Браунам, брат
моей подруги Мэри уже был там. 5. Листва дерева была такая ' густая, что лучи солнца через нее не
проникали. 6. Ты слушал речь министра образования? 7. Познакомься, это Питер, родственник дяди
Альберта. 8. Мне совсем не нравятся эти шуточки твоей тетушки. 9. Я купила это платье в магазине
Маркса и Спенсера. 10. Это не мои слова, а английского премьер-министра Маргарет Тэтчер. 11. Ума
не приложу, что мне делать. 12. Каково население Большого Лондона? 13. Выступление (speech)
президента Банка Англии было очень коротким. 14. Дом моей тещи отсюда в двух шагах.

Exercise 23. Translate the sentences given below into English. Mind the use of the possessive case.
Прекрасные книги Диккенса; книги великого Диккенса; новые стихи одного молодого поэта;
недавняя речь министра образования; новая женская школа; неожиданный приезд разгневанного
отца; тяжелое двухминутное молчание; большой детский магазин; красивая женская шляпка;
несколько красивых женских шляпок; модный женский журнал; игрушки моего младшего сына;
первые игрушки моего сына; самое лучшее произведение Байрона; интересные вчерашние известия;
новая студенческая песня; новая песня наших студентов; громкий голос прохожего; после
двухдневного отсутствия; полное собрание сочинений Маркса и Энгельса; птичье гнездо; новые
птичьи гнезда; новое гнездо этой птицы; волк в овечьей шкуре; лучшие вина Франции; новая квар-
тира моего брата Петра; несколько новых друзей моего старшего брата; прекрасная музыка
Чайковского; лучшие бегуны мира; самая известная песня этой поп-группы; старший сын этой старой
дамы; новые книги моей дочери; новые детские книги; приятная получасовая прогулка; дом моей
любимой тещи; бурные события прошлой недели.

Exercise 24. Translate the sentences given below into English. Mind the use of the possessive case.
1. Это, мне кажется, самая известная песня Дунаевского. 2. На прилавке лежало несколько
маленьких детских шапочек и красивая женская кофточка. 3. Почему первые слова ребенка это
всегда что-то вроде "мама, папа"? 4. Нелегко было посадить космический корабль на твердую
поверхность Луны. 5. Я недавно видел ее фото в одном модном дамском журнале. 6. Хоть он и стар,
но глаза у него как у молодого. 7. Одна талантливая мамина ученица завоевала приз в прошлогоднем
конкурсе. 8. По-моему, коровье молоко вкуснее козьего. 9. После приятного двухдневного пу-
тешествия мы прибыли в дом моих родителей. 10. Как тебе понравилась шумная вчерашняя
вечеринка? 11. Это было очень дорогое женское обручальное кольцо. 12. В канун Нового года мы
собрались в новой квартире моей любимой тещи. 13. "Vogue" – название наиболее известного
журнала женских мод. 14. Когда мы были во Франции, мы посетили почти все лучшие музеи Парижа.

Exercise 25. Translate the sentences given below into English. Mind the use of the possessive case.

1. Летние каникулы я провел у дедушки в деревне. 2. Джон хотел подстричься, но

парикмахерская была закрыта. 3. Свадьба Кэт и Макса праздновалась только родственниками
молодых. 4. Родительский дом милее всего на свете. 5. Моя квартира находится недалеко от уни-
верситета, где я учусь, – в десяти минутах ходьбы. 6. Мама попросила купить буханку хлеба. 7. Ты не
помнишь, как зовут ту леди, с которой мы вчера разговаривали? 8. На кресле я заметил шелковый
шарфик моей старшей сестры. 9. Мой босс был в недельной командировке. 10. Большинство
населения страны недовольно экономической политикой правительства. 11. Экспорт Британии в
США значительно снизился.
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Exercise 26. Translate into English using noun structures.

1. Президент прибыл в страну с трехдневным визитом (2 варианта). 2. Мне нужно купить туфли. Ты
не знаешь, где здесь обувной отдел? 3. Никто не знал, что сказать и наступило минутное молчание. 4.
Когда утром он спустился в столовую, на столе лежали остатки вчерашнего ужина. 5. Доклад
главнокомандующего был краток. 6. Мне кажется, что проблема “отцов и детей” – вечная проблема.
7. Эта дорога закрыта. Ведутся дорожные работы. 8. “Утечка мозгов” – острая проблема
развивающихся стран. 9. Приезд Поля и Кет был неожиданностью для тети Энн. 10. Самые богатые
залежи нефти находятся в Арабских Эмиратах. 11. Проблемы, с которыми человечество столкнулось
в конце ХХ века, – это загрязнение почвы, воздуха и воды, а также “ парниковый эффект”.12. После
двухчасовой прогулки все захотели есть (2 варианта). 13. Портрет жены Рембрандта – одна из самых
известных картин художника. 14. Этому замку триста лет.