The case

I.

the singular:		the plural:
Man’s dream		the children’s toys
the girl’s name		the girls’ names
the butcher’s (shop)	the eagles’ nests
Dickens’s novels or	Dickens’ novels

II. 1) an organization (=a group of people), ships and boats; names of people to mean somebody’s house:

the government’s decision	the ship’s captain
the company’s success	We met at Bill’s.

2) the place: town, city, country, river, ocean, world, names of the countries:

the city’s new center	the world’s population
Britain’s government	Russia’s exports

3) time and distance:

an hour’s rest two hours’ drive (a two hour drive) five-minutes’ walk (a five minute walk)

month’s holiday night’s sleep in two years’ time

4) time words:

tomorrow’s meeting today’s newspaper

yesterday’s talks Sunday’s dinner

5) also with the nouns: the sun, the moon, the earth, the ship;

6) Jack and Jill’s wedding. Jack’s and Pete’s fathers

William and Mary’s reign.

7) At the baker’s/butcher’s/chemist’s, etc. Selfridge’s, Claridge’s, Sotheby’s but: Harrods, Foyles)

8) Tom’s report is much more interesting than Ann’s.

9) In compounds and names consisting of several words the last word takes apostrophe ‘s:

My sister-in-law’s guitar My father-in-law’s son

Henry the Eight’s wives The Prince of Wale’s plane

10) for order’s sake – порядка ради

for old acquaintance’s sake – ради старого знакомства

for God’s/Heaven’s sake – ради бога

at a stone’s throw – в двух шагах

at arm’s length – на расстоянии вытянутой руки

at one's wit's end – в тупике (в недоумении)

11) the needle’s eye - игольное ушко

the pin’s head – булавочная головка

idiot’s smile – идиотская улыбка

angel’s eyes – ангельские глазки

. Archimedes’ Law, Achilles’ heel

Practice

Ex.1. Which part of these sentences is right?

1. Margaret has got very long black hair/hairs. 2.We had a very good weather / very good weather when we were on holiday. 3. Sorry I’m late. I had trouble / troubles with the car this morning. 4. I want something to read. I’m going to buy a/some paper. 5.I want to write some letters. I need a/some paper. 6.It’s very difficult to find work/ job at the moment. Most people prefer a job/work which is near home. 7.Bad news don’t/doesn’t make people happy. 8.The flat is empty. We haven’t got any furniture/furnitures yet. 9.I had to buy a/some bread because I wanted to make some sandwiches. .They will give you plenty of information/informations here.

Ex.2. Choose the correct form, singular or plural.

1.The trousers you bought doesn’t/don’t fit you. They are/It is too short for you. 2.Physics was/were my best subject at school. ~ Really? But I think mathematics is/are much easier than physics. 3.Fortunately the news wasn’t/weren’t as bad as we had expected. 4.The police want/wants to interview me about the robbery. 5.Three days isn’t/aren’t long enough for a good holiday. 6.Where does/do your family live? ~ All my family live/lives with me. 7.Does/do the police know about the stolen money? 8.Can I borrow your scissors? Mine isn’t/aren’t sharp enough. 9.I’m going to take a taxi. Six miles is/are too far for me to walk. 10.The danger of the forests fires is/are very serious for the environment. 11.The fear of the murder and robbery has/have caused many people to leave big cities. 12.The effects of that crime was/were very devastating for the city. 13.Fifty dollars is/are too much to pay for these trousers. 14.Mr Smith accompanied by his wife and daughter is/are arriving tonight. 15.The doctor and his assistant have/has already finished their work today. 16.The majority of the people believe/believes him to be innocent. 17.Neither Bill nor Mary is/are going to the party tonight. 18.Neither Jane nor her parents was/were at home. 19.Look! Two aircraft/aircrafts are flying in the sky. 20 The mass media, TV and the press have/has enormous power in any society. 21. The police have /has weighed all the evidence and have/ has found the accused guilty. 22. When is/are the daily news on? ~ They are/It is on every hour on channel A. 23.Your advice was/were very useful. I usually use your advice/advices when I’m in trouble/troubles. 24.This book contains much/many useful information/informations. 25.Money isn’t/aren’t everything in my life but it is difficult to live without it/them. 26.Coffee/a coffee or tea/a tea, please? ~ Two tea/teas and a coffee/coffee, please. 27. The number of months in a year is/are twelve. 28. Too much/many knowledge/knowledges makes the head bold.

TEST

Choose the right word in brackets.

1. She gave me some useful … (advice, advices) but I didn’t listen.

2. I am surprised at the variety of … (cheese, cheeses) that have appeared in our shops.

3. Could you pass me … (a glass, glass) of water? This table is made of … (a glass, glass).

4. By the … (time, times) the bell rang I managed to read the poem several … (times, time). It seemed to me the best piece of literature of all … (times, time).

5. I was presented with a dozen … (handkerchives, handkerchiefs)

6. I need a piece of … . The house was near … (the wood, wood)

7. She looked at him with … . It’s… Ann isn’t here. (a pity, pity).

8. I bought two … (dozen, dozens) eggs at the market. Pack the eggs in … (dozens, dozen). Is it … (egg, an egg) in your sandwich?

9. He cooked … (potato, potatoes) for dinner.

10. … (Fish, fishes) travels long distances and different (fish, fishes) … live at different levels of water.

11. The Bolshoi Theatre is our … (country, country’s) best opera house.

12. From this tower I can get a … (bird’s, birds) view of the city.

13. They gave him some old clothes of … (Simon, Simon’s).

14. Look at the picture of my … (mother, mother’s). She is a person in the picture.

15. Look at this picture of my … (mother’s, mother). It belongs to her.

16. Here are some photos of my … (friends, friends’). – They are shown in the picture.

17. Here are some photos of my … (friends, friends’). They belong to them.

18. This is a few … (hour’s, hours’) work.

19. It’s twenty … (minutes’, minute’s) walk.

20. Don’t forget to bring me some of your fantastic … (carrot, carrot’s) cake, will you?

21. … (Steve and Jane’s, Steve’s and Jane’s) stories were completely different.

22. Schoolchildren have their physical training lessons twice a week. … (A number/The number) of them is not limited by the Ministry of Education. … (A number/the number) of schools have even more classes of physical culture.

23. … (Peter and Helen’s, Peter’s and Helen’s) flat is large.

24. You can buy this medicine at the … (chemist, chemist’s).

25. Britain’s … (export, exports) to the US have fallen recently.

26. Her new job offers her the opportunity to work at the … (company, company’s) office in Tokyo.

27. No one dared to disobey the … (Commander-in-Chief’s, Commander’s-in-Chief) orders.

28. My … (father-in-law’s, father’s-in-law) house is in Woolen Street.

29. 10, Downing Street is … (the Prime Minister of England’s, the Prime Minister’s of England) official residence.

30. He had a few (forget-me-nots, forgets-me-not) in his hands.

31. We found the boy looking through a (children’s, children) magazine.

32. Nobody could explain the young girl’s behaviour at … (yesterday’s, yesterday) dinner.

33. …(My friend Peter’s, my friend’s Peter) watch was five minutes slow.

34. Various … (fruit, fruits) grow in this country.

35. Two … (hundred, hundreds) delegates took part in the forum.

36. She has got long blond … (hair, hairs). There were only a few … (hair, hairs) left on his bold head.

37. All plane passengers were searched at the … (custom’s, customs).

38. There isn’t enough room in the car for all the … (luggage, luggages).

39. Make sure, you arrange some … (accommodation, accommodations) before you leave.

40. This … (means, mean) of transport saves energy.

41. The wagon is being pulled by two … (oxen, ox) .

42. I told the children a fable about … (wolves, wolfs).

43. In science class, we studied various … (phenomena, phenomenon) of nature.

44. When I was in the park yesterday I saw … (gooses, geese).

45. Every day I read in the newspaper about a new … (crises, crisis) in the world.

46. Selfridges/Selfridges’s is one of the biggest stores in London as well as Harrods/Harrod’s.

47. We shall meet at … (“Arrivals and departures”, “Arrival and departure”).

48. Write … (a 150-word, 150-words) essay on the topic.

49. I shall be back in … (an hour or two, an hour or two’s) time.

50. Too much … (knowledge, knowledges) makes the head bald.