The Form

The Genitive Case

In compounds formed by a noun plus a preposition, or an adverb, or an adjective only the first element takes the plural: passers-by (прохожий), lookers-on (зритель, наблюдатель), courts-martial (трибунал), attorneys-general (генеральный прокурор, министр юстиции).

The plural in compound nouns

1. As a rule in compounds it is the second component that takes the plural form: housewives, tooth-brushes, shoe shops.

2. Compounds in - ful have the plural ending at the end of the word: handfuls ( пригоршня; горсть ), spoonfuls or spoonsful.

3. Compounds in which the first component is “man” or “woman” have plurals in both parts: men-servant, women-doctors. But: man-eaters, woman – haters.

4. Compounds ending in man change it into men: policeman — policemen.

5. Such nouns as German, Roman, Norman are not compounds and therefore they have regular plurals: Germans, Romans, Normans.

6. In compounds originating from a prepositional noun phrase where the preposition is a linking element only the first noun takes the plural form: editors-in-chief, mothers-in-law, men-of-war (военные корабли ).

7. In compounds with a conjunction as a linking element the plural is taken by the second noun: gin-and-tonics.

9. When a compound is a substantivized (переход в разряд сущ-ного) phrase which doesn’t contain a noun, the last element takes the plural form: forget-me-nots, merry-go-rounds, stand-bys ( готовность действовать, помощник, запас ), grown-ups, close-ups ( тщательное рассмотрение, крупный план ), pick-ups (случайные знакомства), drop-outs (дезертиры), go-betweens (посредники).

Case (падеж) is a grammatical category which shows relation of the noun with other words in a sentence. The main meaningof the genitive case is that of possession.

The genitive case may be marked, i.e. having an apostrophe s (’s) or unmarked, e.i. with an apostrophe only.

1) add ’s to singular nouns and names not ending in –s: Tom’s hat;

2) add ’s to singular nouns ending in -s: an actress’s career;

3) add ’s to irregular plural nouns: children’s games, sheep’s wool;

4) add an apostrophe (’) after the -s of regular plurals: the girls' teacher;

5) add ’s to proper names ending in -s: Charles’s car, Denis’s birthday, St. James’s Park;

Note: In many older, foreign and classical (ancient Greek and Roman) names, just add an apostrophe: Guy Fawkes’ night; Socrates’ wife; Cervantes’ Don Quixote [dɔn'kwɪkset]; Euripides’ plays; Archimedes’ Law; Achilles’ heel [ə'kɪliːz]

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6) add ’s to the final component of a compound noun: my mother-in-low’s dress;

7) add ’s to the last word in a phrase: The Duke of Norfolk’s sister; the Secretary of State’s private room (гос.кабинет); someone else’s gloves; in an hour two’s time; the boy on the left’s sister.

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