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144
English plural invariable nouns
Russian singular invariable nouns
sweepings
clothes
greens
contents
odds
cop
одежда
зелень (овощи)
содержание
преимущество (спортивное)
The category of case
§ 179. Case is a grammatical category which shows relation of the noun with other words in a sentence. It is
expressed by the form of the noun.
English nouns have two cases: the common case and the genitive case. However, not all English nouns
possess the category of case; there are certain nouns, mainly nouns denoting inanimate objects, which cannot be
used in the genitive case.
The common case is unmarked, it has no inflexion (zero inflexion) and its meaning is very general.
The genitive case is marked by the apostrophe s (‘s).
§ 180. In writing there are two forms of the genitive: for most nouns it is ‘s (mother’s) and for nouns ending
in -s and regular plural nouns only the apostrophe (mothers’).
In speech there are four ways of pronunciation of the genitive case.
1. [z] after vowels and voiced consonants: Negro’s, dog’s;
2. [s] after voiceless consonants: student’s;
3. [Iz] after sibilants: prince’s, judge’s;
4. zero endings: girls’, boys’.
The zero form is used:
a) with regular plural nouns – students’, drivers’, doctors’;
b) with Greek nouns in -s of more than one syllable:
Socrates’ ['sokrati:z] wife,
Xerxes’ ['z? ksi: z] army,
Euripides’ |ju?'r?p?di:z] plays.
In many other names ending in the voiced sibilant [z] the normal spelling of the genitive case is with the
apostrophe only (though sometimes 's occurs too): Burns’ (Burns’s) poems, Dickens’ (Dickens’s) novels.
Names ending in sibilants other than [z] have the regular [?z] in the genitive:
Marx’s [s?z] ideas,
Tess’s [s?z] misfortunes.
Irregular plural nouns forming their plural by vowel change also have the regular [z] in the genitive:
Children’s games,
women’s faces.
Compound nouns have ’s joined to the final component:
the editor-in-chief’s office,
my mother-in-law’s garden,
a passer-by’s comment.