# Expressing possession with "之"

<SentenceQuiz>

- 害 人 _之_ 心 不 可 有，防 人 _之_ 心 不 可 无。
- 这些 解决 问题 的 方式 仍然 有 不足 _之_ 处。
- 粗心 _之_ 害 大于 无知。

</SentenceQuiz>

<TOC>

- Level: [C1](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/C1_grammar_points) / [HSK6](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/HSK6_grammar_points)
- Similar to
- Used for: [Expressing possession](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Expressing_possession)
- Keywords: [之](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/%E4%B9%8B)

</TOC>

之 is one of the characters from classical Chinese that has come into common usage. It a formal written way to express possession.

## Structure

之 functions similarly to 的 in that it indicates possession. Remember that 之 is used this way formally, and most of the time it is used for titles of works, poems, formal documents etc.

Noun + 之 + Noun

### Examples

- 害 人 _之_ 心 不 可 有，防 人 _之_ 心 不 可 无。
- 这些 解决 问题 的 方式 仍然 有 不足 _之_ 处。
- 粗心 _之_ 害 大于 无知。

之 cannot simply take the place of any 的. Pay attention to the kinds of words it can be paired with.

## Sources and Further Reading

### Books

- [卓越汉语－公司实战篇](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/%E5%8D%93%E8%B6%8A%E6%B1%89%E8%AF%AD%EF%BC%8D%E5%85%AC%E5%8F%B8%E5%AE%9E%E6%88%98%E7%AF%87) (p. 199) [→buy](https://www.amazon.cn/%E5%8D%93%E8%B6%8A%E6%B1%89%E8%AF%AD-%E5%85%AC%E5%8F%B8%E5%AE%9E%E6%88%98%E7%AF%87-%E8%83%A1%E7%81%B5%E5%9D%87/dp/B003QZWQ6M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1347863170&sr=8-1)