Possessorer

Possessorer is a term used in linguistics to refer to the plural of possessor, the semantic role of an entity that possesses or has a relation to another entity (the possessee). In many theoretical frameworks, a possessor can be a person, a group, or an inanimate object that holds ownership, membership, or a part–whole relation to the possessed item. The singular form is possessor; possessorer denotes more than one possessor in a given clause or discourse.

Possessors are typically expressed in language through noun phrases. English, for example, uses a possessor preceding the possessed noun, as in John's book; alternatively, a prepositional “of” construction, as in the book of John, can be used. Other languages mark possession with genitive case on the possessor, possessive adjectives or suffixes on the possessed noun, or different word orders. Some languages treat possession differently for alienable versus inalienable relationships; for example, body parts may require a distinct marking or construction.

In linguistic analysis, possessor constructions examine how languages encode who holds possession, how the possessor is referenced when multiple possessors are involved, and how agreement, case, and word order interact with possession. The term possessorer is primarily a descriptive label and may appear in cross-linguistic surveys of possession or in discussions of parallel forms in related languages.

See also: Possession (linguistics), Genitive case, Possessive constructions, Ownership.