The Possessive Adjectives

The possessive adjectives in English are "My, your, his, her, our, their".  They show to whom things belong or, in other words, possession.  In Spanish, the possessive must agree with the number of items a person has.
    For example, if I have one book, it is mi libro; but if I have two books, they are mis libros .
The Nosotros  form changes in gender as well; they are the only forms to do so.  If we are sharing a book, it is nuestro libro ; and if we are sharing a desk as well, it is nuestra mesa .  If we talk about our families, we are discussing nuestras familias!   When we have misplaced our soft drinks, we search for nuestros refrescos.

Here is a chart to demonstrate how the possessives need to change:

My (Yo)

mi (singular): mi cuaderno mi mochila
mis (plural): mis cuadernos mis mochilas

Your (tú form)

tu (singular) tu cuaderno tu mochila
tus (plural): tus cuadernos tus mochilas

His, her, your (Usted form)

su (singular):  su cuaderno su mochila
sus (plural) sus cuadernos sus mochilas

Their, your (Ustedes - plural)

su (singular):  su cuaderno su mochila
sus (plural) sus cuadernos sus mochilas

Nosotros possessive forms  must agree in GENDER as well as NUMBER:

Our - Nosotros

nuestro/a  (singular):  nuestro cuaderno nuestra mochila
nuestros/as (plural) nuestros cuadernos nuestras mochilas
Practice on the Web! (on the left, click on the type of "Practice"  you want.) Return to grammar Basics page!
Don't forget there is no possessive "S" in Spanish:
review how to say "Ronny's text": el texto de Ronny
Copyright © 2000 Deborah R. Lemon. All rights reserved.