participialpossessive

Participialpossessive is a term used in some grammars to describe a possessive construction in which the possessor is a noun phrase containing a participle that modifies the possessor noun. In this view, the possessive marker attaches to the head noun of the possessor phrase, while the participial modifier provides descriptive information about that possessor.

In English, a participial possessive often appears when the possessor is a concrete or inanimate noun phrase that itself includes a participle. Examples include the broken window's pane, the running shoes' laces, and the sleeping dog's bowl. Here the head of the possessor NP (window, shoes, dog) bears the possessive suffix, and the participle (broken, running, sleeping) describes the possessor noun. The result is a compact way to express possession or association between the possessor and the possessed noun.

Usage and variation: participialpossessives are typically used when the possessor is nonhuman or inanimate, or when a descriptive property of the possessor is relevant. They can be more efficient than an of-phrase (the pane of the broken window) but may be less suitable when the modification is ambiguous or when the possessor is long or complex. The form can be singular or plural, with the appropriate placement of the apostrophe (the broken windows' panes).

Relation to other forms: this construction coexists with the standard genitive 's and with of-phrases. It is analyzed as a subcase of the possessive construction where the modifier belongs to the possessor NP rather than being a separate headed phrase.

See also: possessive case, genitive, noun phrase, participle.