whose

whose
   Two small problems here. One is the persistent belief that whose can apply only to people. The authorities appear to be unanimous that there is nothing wrong with saying, "The book, a picaresque novel whose central characters are . . ." rather than the clumsier "a picaresque novel the central characters of which are ..."
   The second problem arises from a failure to discriminate between restrictive and nonrestrictive clauses (discussed under that, which). Consider: "Many parents, whose children ride motorbikes, live in constant fear of an accident" (Observer). By making the subordinate clause parenthetical (i.e., setting it off with commas), the writer is effectively saying, "Many parents live in constant fear of an accident, and by the way, their children ride motorbikes." The writer meant, of course, that the parents live in fear because their children ride motorbikes; that notion is not incidental to the full thought. Thus the clause is restrictive and the commas should be removed. Gowers cites this example from a wartime training manual: "Pilots, whose minds are dull, do not usually live long." Removing the commas would convert a sweeping insult into sound advice.
   The same problem often happens with who> as in this sentence from my old stylebook at The Times: "Normalcy should be left to the Americans who coined it." Had the writer meant that normalcy should be left only to those Americans who participated in its coining, the absence of a comma would be correct. However, we must assume he meant that it should be left to all Americans, who as a nation, and as an incidental matter, coined it. A comma is therefore required. (In fact we didn't coin the word. It is several hundred years older than the United States and belongs to the English, who coined it. See normalcy.)

Dictionary of troublesome word. . 2013.

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  • whose — [ huz ] function word *** Whose can be used in the following ways: as a determiner (introducing a direct or indirect question): Whose idea was it to come here? (introducing a relative clause): The winner was a Brazilian player, whose name I have… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • whose — 1. Despite a long established folk belief (which Fowler deplored) that whose, when used as a relative, should only mean of whom and not of which, usage over several centuries from the time of Shakespeare and Milton supports its use with reference …   Modern English usage

  • whose — W1S2 [hu:z] determiner, pron [: Old English; Origin: hwAs, from hwa; WHO] 1.) used to ask which person or people a particular thing belongs to ▪ Whose is this? ▪ Whose keys are on the kitchen counter? 2.) used to show the relationship between a… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • whose — [ho͞oz] pron. [ME whos, hwas < OE hwæs, gen. of hwa, WHO] that or those belonging to whom: used without a following noun [whose is this? whose will look best?] possessive pronominal adj. of, belonging to, made by, or done by whom or which… …   English World dictionary

  • Whose — (h[=oo]z), pron. [OE. whos, whas, AS. hw[ae]s, gen. of hw[=a]. See {Who}.] The possessive case of who or which. See {Who}, and {Which}. [1913 Webster] Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray thee. Gen. xxiv. 23. [1913 Webster] The question whose …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • whose|so|ev|er — «HOOZ soh EHV uhr», pronoun. Archaic. of any person whatsoever; whose …   Useful english dictionary

  • whose — gen. of WHO (Cf. who); from O.E. hwæs, gen. of hwa (see WHO (Cf. who)) …   Etymology dictionary

  • whose — ► POSSESSIVE DETERMINER & PRONOUN 1) belonging to or associated with which person. 2) (as possessive determiner ) of whom or which. ORIGIN Old English …   English terms dictionary

  • whose — [[t]huːz[/t]] ♦ (Usually pronounced [[t]hu͟ːz[/t]] for meanings 2 and 3.) 1) PRON REL You use whose at the beginning of a relative clause where you mention something that belongs to or is associated with the person or thing mentioned in the… …   English dictionary

  • whose */*/*/ — UK [huːz] / US [huz] determiner, pronoun Summary: Whose can be used in the following ways: as a determiner (introducing a direct or indirect question): Whose idea was it to come here? (introducing a relative clause): The winner was a Brazilian… …   English dictionary

  • whose*/*/*/ — [huːz] determiner, pronoun summary: Whose can be: ■ a determiner: Whose idea was it to come here? ■ a question pronoun: Whose is this jacket? ■ a relative pronoun: I asked whose it was. 1) used for showing that someone or something belongs to or… …   Dictionary for writing and speaking English

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