ENGLISH
REFERENCE

hers

pron.
A2 Elementary Oxford US //ˈhɝz// UK //hˈɜːz// hers General-service Informal

pron. the thing or things that belong to a woman or girl. You use this word instead of saying 'her' plus the name of the object.

pron. the third-person singular feminine possessive pronoun. Functions as a nominal substitute for a noun phrase already mentioned or implied.


SIMPLE

The blue car is hers.

CONTEXTUAL

I found a pair of glasses on the table and realized they were hers.

COMPLEX

While the initial proposal was a collaborative effort, the most innovative ideas in the final draft were clearly hers.

Origin

From Middle English hires, heres, hers, attested since the 1300s. Equivalent to her + -s (compare -'s).

Usage

Functions as a predicative or independent possessive; it never precedes the noun it refers to.

Pitfall

her'shersPossessive pronouns like hers, ours, and theirs do not take an apostrophe.

© 2026 English Reference