How to Write Better by Mastering Whose and Who’s

Homophones are words that are pronounced the same but are spelled differently and have different meanings. Everyone needs to learn the correct usage of the homophones whose and who’s to be a better writer.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Computer
• Internet Access
• Willingness to Learn

1. You can tell by the spelling that who’s is a contraction of who is (or sometimes, a contraction for who has). It means the same as who is. For example, “who’s that man over there ?” is correct. It’s the short form for “who is that man…” But “whose that man over there?” is incorrect. Whose is not a verb form but is the possessive form of the pronoun who. Whose means who does that belong to?

2. Asking “whose your daddy” is incorrect. The question should be “who’s your daddy,” as in “who is your daddy?” Whose can be used with or without a following noun. You could ask “whose is that?” pointing to an umbrella, or you could ask “whose umbrella is that? Again “whose” is possessive while “who’s” is a contraction normally meaning who is.

3. So when you are not sure which to use in writing, try the contraction by using its full form, “who is” and if that is correct then it’s the contraction “who’s” that you need. But if using “who is” doesn’t make sense, then your choice should be “whose.” Remember, “whose” is possessive; “who’s” is a contraction of “who is.”

4. Study a few more examples to make sure you’ve got it. “Who’s on first base?” is correct because “WHO IS on first base?” is correct. “Whose that in the rain?” is NOT correct because “WHO IS that in the rain is correct. So it should be “Who’s that in the rain?” Now “whose car is that?” must be correct because “who is car is that” doesn’t make sense, so it couldn’t be “Who’s car is that?”

5. If you need additional work with this issue please see the articles in the Resources section. Most are short and they can help you write better using homophones correctly. Plus some contain other helpful information on grammar.

Tips & Warnings

• If you dig this article, please Digg it.
• If you can use “who is” or “who has” for the word in question and it makes sense, then use “who’s.” Otherwise use the possessive “whose.”

Resources

• eLearn English – Who’s, Whose
• WSU – Who’s/Whose
• English Plus Grammar
• MyEnglishTeacher
• How to Be a Better Writer by Avoiding Common Mistakes in Grammar

[ScarlettOHairy]

on 1/20/2009 Great article on using these two confusing words. Thanks! 5*

[JulieMayfield]

on 12/21/2008 Great info! Proper grammar is so important!

[valarie7979]

on 12/21/2008 I can't believe it. This very question just came up this morning. Thank goodness, we used the right one. Thanks for the straight-forward English lesson.

[lydiabily]

on 12/21/2008 Great, simple grammar lesson and good resources, too!