GENITIVE
With basic meanings of or from;
sometimes a retreating context.
ADJECTIVAL
GENITIVE:
A genitive functioning much as an
adjective.
GENITIVE OF CONTENTS – Denoting or showing what the
contents contain. Denoting or showing the contents as full
of or containing, but not of what it is made.
Key to Identification: Replace of with full of or containing.
a jar of wine
a cargo of gold (in terms of the contents that cargo contains or is full of rather than made of)
men
of wisdom and knowledge
GENITIVE OF MATERIAL – Denoting or showing the
material, thing, or people of which a noun is made or consists.
(Close to Genitive of Contents and Partitive Genitive) .
Key to Identification: Replace of with made out of or
consisting of.
a
temple of stone
a
cargo of gold (in terms of the material that cargo consists or made of
rather than full of)
an
army of men
GENITIVE OF POSSESSION – Denotes possession. Denoting or showing the person or thing to which an
object, quality, feeling, or action belongs to or is possessed or owned by. (Used only in the third
person.)
Key to Identification: Replace of with belonging to or
possessed by.
a
the
strength of Hercules
a
love of country
the
cruelty of the tyrant
PARTITIVE GENITIVE (Genitive of the Whole) – Expresses
the whole of which a portion is stated. Expressing the whole or a larger
group after words denoting or naming a part of; a larger group or from which something is derived or
belongs.
Key to Identification: Replace of with which is a
part of.
six
of the men
many
of the women
Note: (all of the x) is not a Partitive
Genitive since all is not a part.
ABLATIVE
GENITIVE:
A genitive functioning with the notion of separation.
GENITIVE OF COMPARISON – Showing comparison usually used with than. Indicating comparison
and used generally with a comparative adjective or adverb.
Key to Identification: Requires the word than before the genitive
instead of the word of.
He is younger than his brother.
The red apple tastes better
than the green apple.
Your life is worth more than
money.
GENITIVE OF SEPARATION (a type of Ablative Genitive) –
Expresses separation out of, (away) from some
verb, noun, or adjective. Denoting the point of
departure, a separation of the genitive noun from the dependent verb, noun, or
adjective.
Key to Identification: Replace of with out of, away
from, or from.
We ceased from work.
free
them from evil men
shake
the dust from your feet
VERBAL
GENITIVE:
A genitive related to a verbal noun.
OBJECTIVE GENITIVE – Denotes or functions as the direct object of
the action or verbal idea implied by the dependent noun. Try
asking "for/about/concerning/toward what"
or "against what". Can you transform
the genitive into the object?
Key to Identification: Replace the verbal noun into a verbal, and replace the
genitive into the object. e.g. "a perception of truth..."
becomes "perceiving truth...".
my love of my mother (my love for what?)
the receptivity of the king (the receiving toward what?)
the
demonstration of his anger (the demonstrating concerning what?)
SUBJECTIVE GENITIVE – Denotes or functions as the subject of the action
or verbal ideal implied by the dependent noun. Try asking "what/who" does the action. Can
you transform the genitive into a subject?
Key to Identification: Replace the verbal noun into a verbal, and replace the
genitive into the subject. e.g. "a perception of truth..."
becomes "truth perceives...".
my mother's love for me or the love of my mother for me (who/what loves?)
the coming of the king (who comes?)
the
obedience of the slaves (who obeys?)
ADVERBAL
GENITIVE:
A genitive functioning as adverbially, (syntactically as an adverb).
GENITIVE OF AGENCY (PERSONAL OR IMPERSONAL AGENT) – Indicates the
agent by whom the action is done. Used to indicate from under or by
the personal or impersonal influence.
Key to Identification: Replace of with by.
sent
by the king
from
under the law
GENITIVE OF EXTENT (MEASURE) – Denoting space, time, or degree of a
noun. Attempts to ask how far
(extent of space) or for how long (extent of
time).
Key to Identification: Replace of with for the extent of or for
the duration of.
a wall of seven feet
a
march of seven days
GENITIVE OF PLACE (WHERE OR WITHIN WHICH) – Place where
or within somewhere.
Key to Identification: Replace of with in, at,
or sometimes through.
nowhere
in all of the land
a finger in water
he passes through that way
GENITIVE OF PRICE – Expresses price or value.
Denoting price, evaluation, and estimation of things. Can
be used with verbs of buying, selling, cost,
value, or exchange.
Key to Identification: Replace of with for (how much?).
He is worthy of a large gift.
She bought a house for much money.
He earned a prize of honor.
GENITIVE OF TIME (WITHIN WHICH OR DURING WHICH) – Denotes a kind of time. Denotes a time within which
or during which an action takes place.
Key to Identification: Replace of with during, at,
or within.
during
the time of winter
of/within a week
working night and day
GENITIVE
AFTER CERTAIN PREPOSITIONS:
A genitive governed by certain prepositions.
GENITIVE OF PLACE FROM WHICH – Expresses
a place from which someone or something comes; whence.
Key to Identification: Before the genitive noun, insert away from, at,
or out of.
They came from
She came out of the house.
Copyright 2008 by Beth Piepenburg. All
rights reserved.