possessive

American  

[puh-zes-iv] / pəˈzɛs ɪv /

adjective

1. jealously opposed to the personal independence of, or to any influence other than one's own upon, a child, spouse, etc.

2. desirous of possessing, especially excessively so.

   Young children are so possessive they will not allow others to play with their toys; a possessive lover.

3. of or relating to possession or ownership.

4. Grammar.

   1. indicating possession, ownership, origin, etc. His in his book is a possessive adjective. His in The book is his is a possessive pronoun.

   2. noting or pertaining to a case that indicates possession, ownership, origin, etc., as, in English, John's in John's hat.

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noun

Grammar.

1. the possessive case.

2. a form in the possessive.

possessive British  

/ pəˈzɛsɪv /

adjective

1. of or relating to possession or ownership

2. having or showing an excessive desire to possess, control, or dominate

   a possessive mother

3. grammar

   1. another word for genitive

   2. denoting an inflected form of a noun or pronoun used to convey the idea of possession, association, etc, as my or Harry's

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noun

1. grammar

   1. the possessive case

   2. a word or speech element in the possessive case

possessive Cultural  

1. The case of a noun or pronoun that shows possession. Nouns are usually made possessive by adding an apostrophe and s: “The bicycle is Sue's, not Mark's.” Possessive pronouns can take the place of possessive nouns: “The bicycle is hers, not his.” (See nominative case and objective case.)

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Other Word Forms

• nonpossessive adjective
• nonpossessively adverb
• nonpossessiveness noun
• possessively adverb
• possessiveness noun
• unpossessive adjective
• unpossessively adverb
• unpossessiveness noun

Etymology

Origin of possessive

From the Latin word possessīvus, dating back to 1520–30. See possess, -ive

Example Sentences

She claims she tried to end the relationship after a few months when Alvarado turned overbearing and possessive.

From Los Angeles Times

Atencio’s fiendish feline would have followed guests throughout the ride, a creature said to despise living humans and with predatory, possessive instincts.

From Los Angeles Times

He praises foreign strongmen and speaks of the country’s military power in possessive terms: My generals, my soldiers, my judges.

From Salon

The inquest has also heard that Gunner Beck received thousands of messages from another senior colleague, Bombardier Ryan Mason, whom she described as being "psychotic and possessive".

From BBC

Later, they sent an updated transcript that changed it again to "supporter's" — a singular possessive that would mean Hinchcliffe's comment.

From Salon

Related Words

• selfish