Name ___________________________

Language and Identity

The genitive ( = showing possession, measurement, source)

Due Wednesday, October 6

Please do your own work and writing clearly and neatly!!!

---

In English, we normally use the "_________ of ___________" construction, not the " _______'s" construction, for:

• Things (not living)
  • Examples: "the sum of the numbers", "dialects of/with more prestige", "states of the United States"
• Part of things (not living)
  • Examples: "the pages of the journal", "the walls of the classroom", "the northern part of the United States"
• Abstract references (references to things that cannot be seen or touched: ideas, etc.)
  • Examples: "the cost of living", "the price of an education"

    ---

Exercises:

1. Mark the correct sentences with a check:

a. ___ Eriko's book about language is on the table in room 118.

b. ___ The roommate of Koji is not Tadashi.

c. ___ Honorifics in Japanese show the status of both the speakers and the persons being spoken to. All other languages also have ways of expressing the same ideas.

d. ___ Many cities in the central part of Ecuador are located in the high mountains.

e. ___ Toko's and Masako's interests are varied and enable him to speak to people of many ages.

f. ___ Chika's favorite class is math, but Issei's is history.

g. ___ The dialects of Mizuho, of Daisuke, and of Mune are all different.

h. ___ The hardest part of living in another country often is learning to live without close friends and family members.

i. ___ The Japanese economy's aspect that is hardest for me to understand is the banking system.

j. ___ The writing of Yuki has improved 100%.

k. ___ Language's power is often underestimated.

l. ___ All languages in the world are of equal complexity, however is it easier to learn a second language that is closer to our own first language.

m. ___ Martin Luther King's language (the way he speaks) reflects his background.

n. ___ The family of John F. Kennedy is Irish Catholic.

2. Correct the incorrect sentences above.

"People from other countries"

not

*"other country's people"

3. Write three sentences of your own using the "_________ of ___________" construction and three sentences of your own using the " _______'s" construction. Do not use the examples already used on this page. Your sentences should be at least 10 words long!

a.

 

 

b.

 

 

c.

 

 

d.

 

 

e.

 

 

f.