double genitive

double genitive (dobbel genitiv): a double genitive is visible in a noun phrase which contains both the s-genitive (or a possessive pronoun) and the of-genitive. E.g. a friend of Mary's; that car of his. The double genitive makes it possible to combine the s-genitive with a central determiner because the s-genitive no longer has determiner function. The meaning of the double genitive is usually not much different from an ordinary genitive or a noun phrase with a possessive determiner (that car of his = his car). Sometimes the double genitive means 'one out of several' or 'some out of many' (a friend of mine / of Mary's = one of my/Mary's friends, some friends of mine / of Mary's= some of my/Mary's friends or just my/Mary's friends).