We (Edith Hope Fine and Judith Josephson) are the Grammar Patrol. Both of us taught for years and are now writers, with thirty plus books between us, including our two popular grammar guides, Nitty-Gritty Grammar and More Nitty-Gritty Grammar. For close to twenty years, we taught writing and grammar basics and now we blog about grammar for writers.

Understand Gerunds and Possessive Pronouns

The Grammar Patrol tends to “Keep Calm and Carry On” in the face of grammar blips. But there’s one common error, primarily spoken, that does make our antennae shiver. It involves gerunds and possessive pronouns.

What’s a gerund? When an ing form of a verb has the job of a noun, it’s called a gerund.

          Sierra, a novice skier, focused on snowplowing.

A noun names a person, place, or thing. What “thing” did Sierra focus on? Snowplowing.

 

The Grammar Patrol’s Trick

Here’s the trick, your December grammar gift from us to you: Use a possessive pronoun before a gerund.

In preparation for this column, we’ve been collecting evidence as to how rampant this error is. (We readily admit—we’re losing ground on this one.)

Take a long look at these examples from our sampling, for instance. Do they ring oddly to your ear?

I appreciate you bringing this up.

Thanks for making the time for me saying a few words.

We’re fine with you going over the case.

Did you hear about them moving?

I appreciate you calling me back.

We’re fine with you going over the case

It’s only because of him leaving that he gets the bowling prize.

We appreciate you being on the show.

It’s nothing to do with you not having time to see me.

Each of these sentences uses an objective pronoun with the gerund: me, you, her, him, us, and them. (Refresher: Objective pronouns are the objects of verbs or prepositions.) For these sample gerund sentences, all you need to do is replace those objective pronouns with possessive ones: my, your, hers, his, our, their. (Heads up, screenwriters, actors, reporters, and pundits—are you with us here?)

 

Corrected Sentences

Here are the sentences with their tiny corrections—just changing one word. First, eyeball these new versions. Then read them aloud to anchor the idea of ing verb forms being preceded by a possessive pronoun.

I appreciate your bringing this up.

Thanks for making the time for my saying a few words.

We’re fine with your going over the case.

Did you hear about their moving?

I appreciate your calling me back.

We’re fine with your going over the case

It’s only because of his leaving that he gets the bowling prize.

We appreciate your being on the show.

It’s nothing to do with your not having time to see me.

We urge you to shake your cheerleading pom-poms and chant along with us, “Ya gotta hold that line! Ya gotta hold that line! Gerunds plus possessives! They’re just fine.”

 

Great Gifts for Writers

Need a grammar refresher that won’t boggle your brain? Our lighthearted Nitty-Gritty Grammar guides, Nitty-Gritty Grammar and More Nitty-Gritty Grammar, feature right/wrong/why examples, ticker tapes with common errors, and lots of grammar-related cartoons that we used when teaching one-day grammar refreshers through San Diego State Extension. We’re delighted that these humorous grammar books have stayed in print for more than fifteen years and, between the two, have now sold close to 150,000 copies.

Keep those grammar pet peeves, funny signs, and questions coming. See you in the new year for another pop quiz.

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