I have repeatedly heard this in an ExxonMobil TV commercial running during the 2008 Olympics coverage.<\/p>\n
Problem:<\/strong> Explanation:<\/strong> The first definition of “own” is pertaining to itself or oneself<\/em>, and the adjective “own” in this usage typically follows a possessive — such as “their” — to highlight the sense of ownership of that possessive.<\/p>\n This relates to an essentially reflexive use of “own”, as in “They earned their own money.”<\/p>\n The second use of “own” is as an intensifier to emphasize that the subject is the one and only actor, and the adjective “own” in this usage always follows a possessive.<\/p>\n This relates to an essentially intensifying use of “own”, as in “They insisted on being their own contractors.”<\/p>\n Unfortunately, the sentence “Malaria has touched their own lives.” calls for the adjective “own” in neither of these ways.<\/p>\n I fear that this form of misuse of “own” is a side effect of the increasing misuse of reflexive pronouns, as in “I am fine. And yourself (sic)?”, and as in “Please send it to Jim and myself.”<\/p>\n Solution:<\/strong> I have repeatedly heard this in an ExxonMobil TV commercial running during the 2008 Olympics coverage. Problem: The adjective does not belong in the sentence. Explanation: The word “own” has two meanings as an adjective. The first definition of “own” is pertaining to itself or oneself, and the adjective “own” in this usage typically follows…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-321","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-adjectives","category-possessives"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nThe adjective does not belong in the sentence.<\/p>\n
\nThe word “own” has two meanings as an adjective.<\/p>\n\n
\n“Malaria has touched their lives.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"