hers
Definition
- Possessive Pronoun:
- Belonging to a female: "hers" is used to indicate that something belongs to a female person or animal previously mentioned or easily identified. It replaces a possessive adjective (e.g., "her") and a noun to avoid repetition.
Usage Examples
- (The book belongs to her.)
- (The car belongs to her, not to me.)
- (A friend who belongs to her social circle.)
Advanced Usage
"a friend of hers": A standard construction using "of" before "hers" to indicate one among many possessions or associates.
- A colleague of hers recommended the restaurant. (One of her colleagues made the recommendation.)
"hers" in formal contexts: Often used in writing or speech to emphasize ownership without repeating the noun.
- The responsibility is hers alone. (She alone bears the responsibility.)
Variants and Related Words
- Her (possessive adjective, determiner): used before a noun to show possession.
- Her hat is on the table. (The hat belonging to her.)
- She (subject pronoun): the female person or animal performing an action.
- She left early. (The female subject left.)
- Her (object pronoun): the female person or animal receiving an action.
- I gave the gift to her. (I gave the gift to the female recipient.)
Synonyms
- Belonging to her: a phrase used to express the same meaning as "hers."
- This seat is belonging to her. (Less common; "hers" is preferred for conciseness.)
Related Idioms
What's hers is hers: an expression meaning that a female person is entitled to keep what she owns or controls.
- In their marriage, what's hers is hers, and what's his is his. (They maintain separate property.)
To each his own (or hers): an idiom meaning everyone has their own preferences, sometimes adapted to gender.
- He likes jazz, and she prefers rock—to each his own, or hers. (Everyone has their own taste.)