whose

USAGE SUMMARY

'whose' is a correct and usable word in written English.
You can use it as a possessive determiner to indicate ownership or belonging. Example: Whose book is this?.

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

60 human-written examples

Where an individual whose image is featured in a Competition entry is aged less than 18 years the entrant confirms that the parent or guardian of that individual has given the relevant consent.

The Guardian

His heroism had been forgotten, but doing something like this means you give the person whose life was cut short another chance, and you acknowledge the part their life played in the next chapter of your family's story".

The Guardian - Lifestyle

The sister of Troy Davis, the man whose execution a year ago amid substantial evidence that he was innocent sparked protests across the US and the world, has vowed to keep on fighting until the death penalty is ended "one state at a time".

The Guardian

It made an arthouse star of Soderbergh and a heavyweight of his backer, Harvey Weinstein, whose studio, Miramax, would come to define quality American cinema over much of the next decade and, perhaps, help to destroy it too (read Indiewire's excellent piece on sex, lies for more on its legacy).

The Guardian - Film

The path to the university, whose president is Donna Shalala, the long-serving health secretary during both terms of Bill Clinton's administration, is well trodden by White House hopefuls: Mitt Romney was here three weeks ago for a Spanish-language interview in an attempt to woo the Hispanic vote.

The Guardian

The flight's crew included four air stewards and the captain, Patrick Sonderheimer, whose attempts to enter the cockpit by hammering on the door and appealing to Lubitz to "open the damned door" were heard on the cockpit voice recorder.

The Guardian

Billy Elliot winningly forsook his mining heritage to pursue a post-industrial career in ballet, pirouetting past the picketlines, but his dream was ultimately embraced by the community, whose whip-round gets him to the big London audition.

The Guardian - Film

"You see it in personalities whose idea of leadership is to rescue the situation – it's quite a macho thing," he suggests.

The Guardian

The prime minister tried to move the focus to Miliband after Reckless, whose defection from the Conservatives triggered the byelection, inflicted a humiliating blow.

The Guardian

Zoe Quinn, the game developer whose online harassment eventually spawned the anti-feminist GamerGate movement, said it was "nice to see Twitter trying to address this issue".

The Guardian - Tech

The only manager standing now between Alex Neil and the Premier League is Middlesbrough's Aitor Karanka, whose preparations for next week's Championship play-off final will probably involve consulting his friend José Mourinho, to whom he used to be assistant manager at Real Madrid.

The Guardian - Sport

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "whose" to indicate possession or belonging, especially when referring to people or entities previously mentioned. For example, "The author, "whose" book won an award, is here tonight."

Common error

Avoid confusing "whose", which indicates possession, with "who's", which is a contraction of "who is" or "who has". Using the wrong one can change the meaning of your sentence and create confusion.

Linguistic Context

The primary grammatical function of "whose" is to act as a possessive determiner. It indicates ownership or association, modifying a noun to show to whom or what something belongs. As Ludwig AI explains, it's used to indicate ownership or belonging.

Expression frequency: Very common

Frequent in

News & Media

100%

Less common in

Science

0%

Formal & Business

0%

Wiki

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "whose" functions as a possessive determiner, indicating ownership or association. As Ludwig AI confirms, it is grammatically correct and widely used. It is most frequently encountered in News & Media contexts and maintains a neutral register, making it suitable for various writing styles. When using "whose", be mindful of the common error of confusing it with "who's", a contraction of "who is" or "who has". Alternatives such as "belonging to whom" and "of whom" can be used for variety or emphasis, but "whose" generally provides the most concise and direct way to express possession.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

belonging to whom

Uses a prepositional phrase to indicate possession, rather than a possessive determiner.

who owns it

Simplifies the question to focus on the act of ownership.

of whom

Emphasizes the relationship between a person and something they possess.

to whom does it belong

Presents the question of ownership in a more formal and direct way.

to whom does this item belong

Similar to "belonging to whom" but specifies that the belonging thing is an item

to whom does this appertain

Uses more formal language to inquire about ownership.

to whom does this pertain

Similar to 'to whom does this appertain', using a different synonym for 'belong'.

whose property is it

Rephrases the question using the noun "property" to refer to the object of possession.

the [noun]'s

A construction with a noun in possessive form instead of a pronoun in possessive form.

of which person

Alternative phrasing emphasizing the human subject.

FAQs

How to use "whose" in a sentence?

"Whose" is used to ask or indicate which person owns or is associated with something. For example, "Whose car is parked outside?" or "The company, "whose" profits increased, invested in new technology."

What can I say instead of "whose"?

Depending on the context, you can use alternatives like "belonging to whom", "of whom", or rephrase the sentence using a possessive noun. For example, instead of "The artist, "whose" paintings are famous,", you can say "The artist's paintings are famous".

Which is correct, "whose" or "who's"?

"Whose" indicates possession, while "who's" is a contraction of "who is" or "who has". For example, "Whose book is this?" is correct, while "Who's going to the party?" uses the contraction "who's" correctly.

What's the difference between "whose" and "of whom"?

"Whose" is a possessive determiner, while "of whom" is a prepositional phrase used to indicate possession or relationship. "Whose" is generally more concise, but "of whom" can be used for clarity or emphasis in certain contexts. For example, "The candidate, "whose" policies focused on education..." can also be expressed as "The candidate, of whom the policies focused on education..." but is less common.