double possessive

American  

noun

Grammar.

1. a possessive construction consisting of a prepositional phrase with of containing a substantive in the possessive case, as of father's in He is a friend of father's.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

double possessive

We can now account for what has hitherto puzzled all grammarians, namely, the double possessive.

From Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 58, Number 360, October 1845 by Various

In parsing, some idioms—the double possessive, for example—do not come under regular grammatical rules, and are to be spoken of merely as idioms.

From An English Grammar by Sewell, James Witt

Both of these are now used side by side; sometimes they are used together, as one modifier, making a double possessive.

From An English Grammar by Sewell, James Witt

A peculiar form, a double possessive, has grown up and become a fixed idiom in modern English.

From An English Grammar by Sewell, James Witt