Home/Common Mistakes/Writing/Apostrophes/Possessive compound nouns
Home/Common Mistakes/Writing/Apostrophes/Possessive compound nouns

Possessive compound nouns

When talking about time or distance, we use the number + noun expression as part of a possessive compound noun.

If the number is one or less, or ends in a fraction: a half, a quarter, etc, the unit of measurement is in the singular and is followed by -‘s.

  • It’s only half-an-hour’s drive.
    (a drive of half an hour)
  • A week’s break.
    (a break of a week)
  • There’s half-a-metre’s width between the two walls.
    (the width of half a metre)

If the number is more than one, the unit of measurement is in the plural and is followed by an apostrophe.

  • It’s five hours’ drive from here.
    (a drive of five hours)
  • We’ll be back in two weeks’ time.
    (a time of two weeks)
  • It’s ten metres’ to the ground.
    (ten metres to the ground)