Is "This is one of my friends' book" right?
- Thread starter Ever Sky
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Welcome to the forum.
Perhaps you left out an apostrophe. This book is one of my friend's.
But in speech, it would sound as if you were calling the book a friend and it isn't natural in writing either.
But I think more usual ways of saying it are:
This is my friend's book.
This book belongs to a friend.
Actually, no. That means the book is a friend of yours.
Perhaps you left out an apostrophe. This book is one of my friend's.
But in speech, it would sound as if you were calling the book a friend and it isn't natural in writing either.
You need: This is one of my friends' books.
But I think more usual ways of saying it are:
This is my friend's book.
This book belongs to a friend.
Perhaps
, but the apostrophe should not be there. --> friends'I agree, of course, that in speech it would sound like you have friends and this book is one of them.
Thank you Barque!
Actually I put the apostrophe after "friends" in the sentence “This book is one of my friends'”.
Now thanks to your help I know it would sound strange to others, but I think theoretically this sentence isn't necessarily wrong in grammar though it's confusing in speaking, am I right?
After all, now I know how to express this more natually, thanks again!
Yes, that works. So does mine, if you think of "one" as applying to the book, rather than to "friends".
This book is one of my friend's = This book is one belonging to my friend.
(I admit I was reading it the same way as you do, but then realised it works this way too.
)Thank you BoozerPerhaps
I agree, of course, that in speech it would sound like you have friends and this book is one of them.
Maybe not, but it's so awkward that I wouldn't use it.
It's ambiguous too. This book is one of my friends' can also mean that your friends own some books together and this is one of them.
Got it, thanks! Your explainations just come in handy!