Possessive articles

Foreign Languages

Definition

Possessive articles (or possessive adjectives) indicate ownership or belonging and must agree with the noun they modify. In French, they agree with the gender and number of the possessed noun, not the owner. In German, they also change based on the grammatical case of the noun.

Examples

  • French: 'mon livre' (my book, masc.), 'ma maison' (my house, fem.), 'mes amis' (my friends, plural)
  • Spanish: 'mi casa' (my house), 'tus libros' (your books), 'nuestro perro' (our dog)
  • German: 'mein Bruder' (my brother), 'deine Mutter' (your mother), 'sein Buch' (his book)
Key Fact

French possessive articles: mon/ma/mes, ton/ta/tes, son/sa/ses, notre/nos, votre/vos, leur/leurs.

Related Terms

Demonstrative adjectives Partitive articles Adjective agreement Possessive de

Study This Concept

Practice possessive articles with free review games in these units:

German 1 Unit 3: Family and Friends