ENGLISH
REFERENCE

on their own

prep. phr..
B1 Intermediate Oxford

prep. phr.. to do something without any help from other people or to be by yourself.

prep. phr.. functioning as an adverbial or adjectival phrase to indicate solitude or autonomy; the possessive pronoun must agree with the subject.


SIMPLE

They are living on their own now.

CONTEXTUAL

The children finished the difficult puzzle on their own without asking for help.

COMPLEX

While some species hunt in packs, these predators prefer to survive on their own in the harsh mountain environment.

Usage

the pronoun 'their' changes to match the subject (e.g., 'on my own', 'on her own').

Teaching tip

contrast with 'by themselves' which is a near-synonym; 'on their own' often emphasizes independence and self-reliance more than just physical solitude.

Pitfall

They did it on them own.They did it on their own.the phrase requires a possessive adjective like 'their' or 'my', not an object pronoun like 'them'.

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