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adjectival genitive

Concept
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A genitive construction serving adjectival or descriptive function

Detailed Definition
A possessive construction functioning like an adjective to modify a noun, common in both classical and modern poetry. Examples include "the city's heart" or "winter's cold," where the genitive form describes qualities or associations rather than strict ownership. This construction allows compressed description and creates metaphorical connections between possessor and possessed. In poetry, adjectival genitives contribute to economy of expression and can create surprising or illuminating associations through unexpected pairings.
Example
Example in poetry:
Shakespeare’s “the world’s fresh ornament” (Sonnet 1) uses adjectival genitive where “world’s” modifies “fresh ornament” as a possessive adjective; Milton’s “Satan’s proud hopes” in Paradise Lost turns the noun “Satan” into an adjectival modifier; In Keats’ “Ode on a Grecian Urn,” “Attic shape” employs adjectival genitive—“Attic” derives from “Attica” to describe the urn’s origin; Emily Dickinson’s “the Soul’s stern look” treats “Soul’s” as an adjective modifying “stern look”; T.S. Eliot’s “the typist’s hands” in The Waste Land converts a noun into a descriptive adjective; Sylvia Plath’s “Daddy” uses “black shoe” where “black” functions as an adjectival genitive implying possession or essence.
Additional Notes
Adjectival genitive is a possessive construction using adjectives derived from nouns (e.g., “golden” from “gold”); in poetry, it adds archaic or elevated tone and compact description.
Also Known As
Genitive with adjective Descriptive genitive Qualifying genitive Attributive genitive
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