AN INTRODUCTION TO ENGLISH GRAMMAR & LANGUAGE
6. POSSESSIVE PRONOUN                                            9. NOUNS DENOTING NUMBER OR AMOUNT
    Our, your, her, their etc. are called possessive adjectives.      (a) Indefinite Pronoun
    And,                                                              The Indefinite Pronoun are those that have no actual
    Mine, thine, hers, ours, yours and theirs etc. are called    relationship with a Noun in their own or a neighbouring
possessive pronouns.                                             sentence, but which stand generally for a Noun.
    Note : Noun is not used after possessive pronoun.                 Ex. : one, none, some, all, any, many, both etc.
    For example,                                                      For example,
         Your watch is new but mine watch is old.                          One should be careful of one"s
                                                      — wrong              health (= any man and every man)
         Your watch is new but mine is old. — correct                      One cannot be too careful of one"s purse.
         Her pen is unique but mine pen is ordinary.                       (not his)
                                                      — wrong
                                                                           None was allowed to get in.
         Her pen is unique but mine is ordinary. — correct
                                                                           None of his answers are correct.
Use of Possessive Pronouns
     (1) When a verb comes in between a Noun and a                    Any and all are used in both numbers.
         pronoun.                                                     For example,
         For example,                                                      Do (or does) any of your know him?
             Yours is the gain, mine the loss.                             Any of these is (or are) long enough.
     (2) When the Noun is understood.                                      All that glitters is not gold.
         For example,                                                      All of us are ready.
             I have got my pen, where is yours?                       Both, some, many and few are plural.
             [Yours = your pen]
                                                                      For example,
     (3) When the pronoun is preceded by of.
                                                                           Both of them were absent.
         For example,
             This book of mine was stolen.                                 Some of my friends are here.
7. RECIPROCAL PRONOUN                                                      Few were chosen and many were dismissed.
    Reciprocal Pronoun includes :                                     (b) Distributive Pronoun
         Each other                                                   Each, everyone, either and neither are Distributive
    and one another                                              Pronouns, as they separate are person or thing from a
         Each other is used for two, while                       group of persons or things : they always take singular
         One another is used for more than two.                  verbs while other pronouns referring to them must also
    For example,                                                 be singular.
         The two boys love each other.                                For example,
                ̄                      ̄                                     Each of them was a scholar.
              two                each other                                Everyone of them was busy.
         The five girls hate one another.                                  Either of the two boys was required but neither of
                ̄                     ̄                                      them was ready.
              five               one another                          For example,
    But, now-a-days, both each other and one another are                   Let each of us go there in our turn.    — wrong
used for two or more than two.                                             Let each of us go there in his turn.   — correct
    For example,                                                           Everyone of them have separate room to sleep.
         The six boys love each other.            — correct                                                        — wrong
         The two girls hate one another.          — correct                Everyone of them has a separate room to sleep
8. UNIVERSAL PRONOUN                                                       in.                                    — correct
     (1) Universal Pronoun includes anybody, somebody,
         nobody, everybody, someone, everyone etc. which
         indicate singular nouns.
                                                                                       ADJECTIVE
         For example,                                                 An Adjective is a describing word that adds something
              Anybody has helped him.                            to the meaning of a Noun.
              Somebody opposes him.                                   For example,
              Everybody loves song.                                        Harish is a clever boy.
              Nobody knows God.
                                                                                           ̄
     (2) Universal Pronoun also includes all, both, some,
         many etc. which indicate plural nouns.                                         Adjective
         For example,                                                 Here, clever shows what kind of boy Harish is; or,
              All are lazy here.                                 we may say, clever describes the boy—Harish.
              Both have done their job.                                    I do not like that girl.
              Some have required.                                                           ̄
              Many were there.                                                          Adjective
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