Whose and who's for asking questions
Introduction
Whose wallet is this? Who's this?
Definition
Whose is a pronoun that we can use to ask questions.
Who's is a contraction of 'who is' or 'who has' and we also use it to ask questions.
They are sometimes confused because they have the same pronunciation. - /huːz/.
[Note that 'whose' is also a relative pronoun. For more information, see Relative Pronouns: whom, whose, where.]
Construction
Whose
| Construction | Examples |
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1. 'Whose' + 'to be' + object?
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Whose is this pen?
Whose are those desks? |
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2. 'Whose' + object + 'to be' + ...?
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Whose pen is this?
Whose desks are those?
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Who's
| Construction | Examples |
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1. 'Who's' + ...?
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Who's your boss? [who is]
Who's hungry? [who is]
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1. 'Who's' + got + ...?
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Who's got a red pen I can borrow? [who has]
Who's got a pet at home? [who has]
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Note that 'who's' [who has] is also used in present perfect sentences.
Uses
| Question word | Use | Examples |
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Whose |
To ask about possession. |
"Whose books are these on the table?" "They belong to John."
"Whose turn is it to take the minutes?" "Mine." |
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Who's |
To ask about people.
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"Who's going to the meeting?" "The team leaders are."
"Who's Tom's manager?" "Sarah is."
"Who's got a pool?" "I have, we can have the pool party at my place."
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Examples
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| "Whose is this key? I found it by the coffee machine." "I think it's Sarah's." | "Who's got a laptop I can use? Mine is broken again." "You can use this one; I don't need it for the moment." |
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"Who's that with Mark?" "It's Maria. She's his new secretary." |
"Who's got an appointment at 10 o'clock?" "I have." |
