1. -- word that names a person, place, thing, or idea

2. * Girl * Switch * Hobby * Life * Goose * Fish * Girls (most add –s) * Switches (add –es for endings in s, ch, sh, x, z) * Hobbies (change y to i & add –es) * Lives (ending in f or fe, change f to v & add –s or –es) * Geese (irregular plural) * Fish (some don’t change)

3. * 1. star * 2. trout * 3. half * 4. joy * 5. waltz * 6. mystery * 7. flash * 8. tooth * 9. box * 10. onion

4. * 1. stars * 2. trout * 3. halves * 4. joys * 5. waltzes * 6. mysteries * 7. flashes * 8. teeth * 9. boxes * 10. onions

5. --can show possession, ownership, or the general relationship between two nouns --add an apostrophe and –s to form the possessive of any singular noun --use just an apostrophe to form the possessive of a plural noun that ends in s --add an apostrophe and –s to form the possessive of plural noun that doesn’t end in s

6. Plural Possessive Examples The kittens’ tails Her dresses’ collars The wives’ speeches The cookies’ decorations The stories’ villains The watches’ batteries Singular Possessive Examples The kitten’s tail Her dress’s collar The wife’s speech The cookie’s decoration The story’s villain The watch’s battery

7. PRACTICE POSSESSIVE NOUNS Rewrite each phrase using the possessive form of the noun in parentheses.

8. ANSWERS

9. * Noun made of two or more words * May be open, hyphenated, or closed * EXAMPLES OPENgray fox, press secretary, line of sight HYPHENATEDmother-in-law, tenth-grader, good-bye CLOSEDfolksinger, headlight, postmaster

10. * EXAMPLES CONCRETEair, melody, stone, aroma, heat ABSTRACTattitude, dignity, loyalty, sadness * Concrete names an object that occupies space or can be recognized by any of the senses * Abstract names an idea, a quality, or a characteristic

11. * EXAMPLES COMMONartist, uncle, country, lake, shuttle, vehicle, religion PROPERMichelangelo, Uncle Louis, Mexico, Lake Superior, Jeep, Judaism * Common is the general – not the particular – name of a person, place, thing, or idea. * Proper is the name of a particular person, place, thing, or idea. A proper noun is capitalized.

12. 1. Homer’s Odyssey is an epic poem. 2. Who is the Steelers’ new quarterback? 3. Victoria saw Mrs. Ramos fall and helped her up. 4. Honesty is one of Andy’s best qualities. 5. One goal for good health is to drink eight glasses of water every day. 6. Bessie Coleman was the first African American female pilot. 7. Like any explorer, astronauts cherish the hope of discovering a new world. 8. Has Mickey ever written a song? 9. The vision of Chief Wilma Mankiller is to lead the Cherokee Nation to self-reliance. 10. The language we call Old English was spoken during the Middle Ages.

13. 1. Proper: Homer’s, Odyssey6. Proper: Bessie Coleman Common: poem –concrete Common: pilot -concrete 2. Proper: Steelers’7. Common: explorer -concrete Common: quarterback –concrete astronauts -concrete 3. Proper: Victoria, Mrs. Ramos hope -abstract 4. Proper: Andy’s world -concrete Common: honesty –abstract8. Proper: Mickey qualities –abstract Common: song -concrete 5. Common: goal –abstract9. Proper: Chief Wilma Mankiller, health –abstract Cherokee Nation glasses –concrete Common: vision -abstract water –concrete self-reliance -abstract day –concrete10. Proper: Old English, Middle Ages Common: language -concrete

14. * Singular in form but names a group * Sometimes considered singular and sometimes plural * EXAMPLES FamilyHerdCompanyBandTeam AudienceTroopCommitteeJuryFlock