# The use of 'me' as a possessive pronoun **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 15, 2017, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715 "2017-11-15T21:02:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2017, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/21 "2017-11-16T00:29:40Z")
> [@The\_Stafford\_Cripps](#): > > IANA linguist, but my guess is that it’s never changed. Scots still has lots of pronunciations which I think date from before the great vowel shift, like ‘hoose’ for ‘house’, so it wouldn’t be surprising to find them in other parts of Britain. Now I’m going to be thinking of that Sylvester cartoon where he lives in a lighthouse with a Scottish lighthouse keeper. “Sylvester! There’s a moose loose in the hoose!” ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2017, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/22 "2017-11-16T01:35:12Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > It was OK, but I didn’t think it was _that_ great. I laughed more than I should have at this. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2017, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/23 "2017-11-16T01:38:22Z")
> [@zimaane](#): > > Interesting. Do we know if the ‘me’ pronunciation is preserved from that time, or if it shifted to ‘my’ and then shifted back to ‘me’ later? I can’t speak for elsewhere, but here in North East England, both pronunciations are used: “me” in unstressed positions (“I’ll get me coat”)’ and “my” in stressed positions (“Oi! That’s _my_ coat!”). My impression is that this used to be more widespread, if not standard, and is simply disguised by different spelling conventions. The vowel sound of “me” (possessive) isn’t necessarily identical to the vowel sound the same speaker would use for “me” (first person). The spelling is simply a convention to differentiate two pronunciations of the word “my”, which writers may not always have thought important, or represented in different ways. Is there much difference in pronunciation between “me lord”, “milord” and “m’lord”? ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2017, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/24 "2017-11-16T02:01:40Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > [This](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EK0R272RjXI) Beatles reference works, though. Also at the end of Helter Skelter where John wails, “I’ve got blisters on me fingers!” ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2017, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/25 "2017-11-16T03:45:37Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > Also at the end of Helter Skelter where John wails, “I’ve got blisters on me fingers!” That was [Ringo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helter_Skelter_(song)#Recording). ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2017, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/26 "2017-11-16T14:24:35Z")
> [@Dr.Strangelove](#): > > Great. Now I’m going to think about pirates every time I hear that song. Ye canna buy me love, matey. Yarrr. Well shiver me timbers! ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2017, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/27 "2017-11-16T14:29:25Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > That was [Ringo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helter_Skelter_(song)#Recording). I often get me Beatles mixed up, too. Same with me beetles. ---
**Author:** ![jaycat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jaycat/32/3015_2.png) [@jaycat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jaycat)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2017, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/28 "2017-11-16T15:19:33Z")
> [@markn\_1](#): > > . . . It would be equally erroneous to call . . . \*\*\*non-rhoticity \*\*\*in Boston an affectation. “Sir, I have heard it asked for in many ways, shapes and forms, but I’ve never heard it in the pluperfect subjunctive before.” ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2017, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/29 "2017-11-16T15:24:45Z")
> [@markn\_1](#): > > I don’t think it’s correct to call this usage “slang” or an “affectation”. It’s a dialectical variant. It would be equally erroneous to call “y’all” in the southern US or non-rhoticity in Boston an affectation. I’ve heard it used ‘that’s me mommy’ so affectionate would be a use I have seen. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2017, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/30 "2017-11-16T15:32:03Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > I’ve heard it used ‘that’s me mommy’ so affectionate would be a use I have seen. “Affectation”, not “affection”. > [@](#): > > **affectation** > noun > behaviour, speech, or writing that is pretentious and designed to impress. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2017, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/31 "2017-11-16T15:34:34Z")
Is [Harry Belafonte](https://youtu.be/9L9angh4KdQ?t=79) from Oop North? ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2017, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/32 "2017-11-16T17:36:45Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > That was [Ringo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helter_Skelter_(song)#Recording). Thanks for that. As a guitarist, I have had blisters on my fingers. If I were a drummer, I would have said “hands”. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2017, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/33 "2017-11-16T22:54:21Z")
“I’m looking for me hat.” –Tom Reagan,\* Miller’s Crossing\* ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2017, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/34 "2017-11-16T23:10:27Z")
It’s a common quality to a lot of non-prestige dialects. ---
**Author:** ![Philliam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/philliam/32/3011_2.png) [@Philliam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philliam)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2017, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/35 "2017-11-17T01:18:37Z")
Or to quote my old Yorkshire shipmate, “I’ll be in me bastid’ cabin 'avin a quiet wank and a kip”. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2017, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/36 "2017-11-17T17:22:59Z")
Around these parts we would likely use ‘mine’ instead of ‘me’ as the possessive, and if it belongs to you then its ‘thine’ or ‘thy’ or ‘thee’ Get thee booits on - we’re of to mine fer some swalley. (Put your going out clothes - especially your boots - we are going to my local pub for some beer - quantity being the important factor here and not quality) Note that around these parts we would not make the mistake of using the word ‘mine’ to mean a coal mine because a)there are no mines left these days b) Such a place would always be called ‘t’pit’ ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2017, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/37 "2017-11-17T17:29:18Z")
> [@Philliam](#): > > Or to quote my old Yorkshire shipmate, “I’ll be in me bastid’ cabin 'avin a quiet wank and a kip”. 😃 Also a line from the British remake of _Firefly_. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2017, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/38 "2017-11-21T20:13:28Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > “Me brain hurts!” > -_Gumby Theatre_, Monty Python I’ve always heard it as “My brain hurts!” In the dialects where people say “me” for “mine”, is the possessive still understood to be “my” but simply pronounced differently? Would a Liverpudlian or Mancunian actually write the word down as “me”, when they mean the possessive? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stafford_cripps/32/7167_2.png) [@The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stafford_Cripps)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2017, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/39 "2017-11-21T20:21:56Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > I’ve always heard it as “My brain hurts!” > > In the dialects where people say “me” for “mine”, is the possessive still understood to be “my” but simply pronounced differently? Would a Liverpudlian or Mancunian actually write the word down as “me”, when they mean the possessive? It depends on why they are writing. The answer would probably be much the same as it would be if you asked whether people from the American south write “y’all” or “you” - facebook perhaps, formal letter for work probably not. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2017, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715/40 "2017-11-21T20:27:49Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > Thanks for that. As a guitarist, I have had blisters on my fingers. If I were a drummer, I would have said “hands”. I think the blisters are from going up and down the slide, or the helter skelter. Anyway, I hear that line as “my fingers” not “me fingers”. Is there any cite available either way? I suppose I could check Beatles Rock Band, but I’m not sure if that’s authoritative. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-me-as-a-possessive-pronoun/801715.md?page=3)