ours
- 01 A2 Elementary
the thing or things that belong to you and the people you are with.
the possessive pronoun used to refer to something previously mentioned that belongs to the speaker and others.
Simple“We didn't have a map, but our friends let us borrow ours.”
In context“While their research focused on urban development, ours was concerned primarily with the ecological impact of rural expansion.”
PitfallThe blue car is our's. The blue car is ours.Possessive pronouns like 'ours', 'yours', and 'hers' never take an apostrophe.
- 02 B1 Intermediate
your house or the place where you live.
used informally to refer to the speaker's residence or household.
Simple“Why don't you come over to ours for dinner on Friday night?”
In context“After the concert ended, the whole group headed back to ours to continue the celebration until the early hours of the morning.”
Synonymsour houseour place - 03 B2 Upper Intermediate
belonging to a group you identify with, like your company, school, or country.
indicates belonging to a collective entity with which the speaker identifies, such as an institution or nation.
Simple“Their school has a new gym, but ours has a better library.”
In context“While many competing firms struggled during the recession, ours managed to maintain steady growth through diversified investments.”
From Middle English oures, attested since the 1300s. Equivalent to our + -s (compare -'s); formed by analogy to his. Displaced ourn (from Middle English ouren) in standard speech.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.