Virtuous English AcademyPossessive Adjectives in English (A1)
- #A1
- #Grammar
- #Rules
- #Quiz
- #Examples
Possessive adjectives (my, your, his, her, its, our, their) come before a noun to show who owns something. This lesson teaches them through family and everyday examples so you can talk naturally about your things and your people.
Possessive adjectives — my, your, his, her, its, our, their — answer the question whose? They go directly in front of a noun and tell your listener who something belongs to. They are among the first words beginners need, because you cannot introduce your family, describe your home or talk about your job without them.
The key idea is that a possessive adjective in English agrees with the owner, not with the thing owned. This trips up speakers of French, Spanish, Italian and German, where the word changes to match the object. In English, a man says his car and his books; a woman says her car and her books. The noun that follows makes no difference at all.
Possessive adjectives never take an article and never take a plural -s. You cannot say the my car or mys books. The possessive adjective replaces the article: it is my car, not the my car. Once you accept that these words do the article's job, a whole family of beginner errors disappears.
How to form Possessive Adjectives
| Subject pronoun | Possessive adjective | Example |
|---|---|---|
| I | my | My name is Elena. |
| you | your | Your bag is on the chair. |
| he | his | His father is a pilot. |
| she | her | Her flat is near the park. |
| it | its | The dog hurt its paw. |
| we | our | Our teacher is very patient. |
| they | their | Their children go to my school. |
Possessive Adjectives: the key rules
-
Possessive adjectives — my, your, his, her, its, our, their — always come directly before a noun and never change for plural nouns.
My brother lives here. My brothers live here.
-
The possessive matches the owner, not the thing owned.
Anna loves her car. Tom loves his car.
-
Its (no apostrophe) is the possessive; it's always means it is.
The cat drank its milk. It's a friendly cat.
-
Their is the possessive for groups — people or things.
The students opened their books.
When to use Possessive Adjectives
-
Family and relationships
The most common use at A1: introducing the people in your life. Notice the possessive replaces the article completely.
My brother is a nurse. His wife works with him.
-
Possessions and personal things
Saying which objects belong to which person, from phones and keys to houses and cars.
Our car is quite old. Their car is new.
-
Body parts
English uses a possessive adjective with body parts where many languages use a definite article. This is a frequent source of errors.
She washed her hands. He broke his arm.
-
Jobs, homes and daily routine
Describing the fixed parts of someone's life — where they work, live and study.
My office is in the city centre, and my journey takes forty minutes.
its vs. it's — the most confused pair in English
These two look almost identical and sound exactly the same, but they do completely different jobs. Even native speakers get this wrong in writing, so learning the test below puts you ahead.
its — possessive, no apostrophe
Shows that something belongs to a thing or animal. It behaves exactly like my, his and their, none of which take an apostrophe.
The company changed its name. The cat drank its milk.
it's — a short form of it is or it has
The apostrophe replaces the missing letter. If you can expand it to it is or it has and the sentence still works, you need the apostrophe.
It's raining again. It's been a long day.
Possessive Adjectives in example sentences
- My parents live in a small village.my before a plural noun — the form never changes.
- Is this your umbrella?your for one person or several.
- David lost his passport at the airport.his agrees with David, the owner — not with passport.
- Sofia sold her motorbike last month.her because Sofia owns it; the object's gender is irrelevant.
- The hotel has its own swimming pool.its with no apostrophe — possession, not it is.
- Our neighbours are very friendly.our includes the speaker.
- The students forgot their homework.their for a plural owner.
- He put his coat on and left.English prefers a possessive with clothes and body parts where other languages use the.
Possessive Adjectives in a real conversation
Every possessive here matches the owner, and none of them takes an article.
Nadia:Is this your phone?
Omar:No, mine is black. I think it's Leo's — his phone has a red case.
Nadia:You're right. Where is he?
Omar:In the canteen with his sister. Her lecture finished early.
Nadia:Can you give it to him? Our class starts in five minutes.
Omar:Sure. I'll get my bag and go now.
Common mistakes (and how to fix them)
-
She loves his job.
She loves her job.
The owner is she, so the possessive must be her — even though 'job' has no gender.
-
The dog wagged it's tail.
The dog wagged its tail.
It's = it is. The possessive its never takes an apostrophe.
-
I visited the my grandmother.
I visited my grandmother.
Never use the and a possessive adjective together before the same noun.
Practice questions
-
I have a new bicycle. ___ bicycle is red.MyHisYour
-
Mary has a sweet sister. ___ sister is ten years old.HisHerIts
-
Peter and Tom are brothers. ___ parents are doctors.OurYourTheir
Practise Possessive Adjectives today
Possessive adjectives become automatic through repetition about people you actually know.
- Draw your family tree and write one sentence about each person using a possessive adjective.
- Write five sentences about your best friend, using his or her correctly each time.
- Test yourself: replace its/it's in these — The bird built ___ nest. ___ very early.
- Describe what three people in the room are wearing, using his, her and their.
Possessive Adjectives: frequently asked questions
What is the difference between my and mine?
My is a possessive adjective and must be followed by a noun: my house, my keys. Mine is a possessive pronoun and stands completely alone, replacing the noun: That house is mine. A quick test is to look at the next word — if a noun follows, use my; if the sentence ends or a verb follows, use mine. The same pattern gives you your/yours, her/hers, our/ours and their/theirs.
Why do English speakers say she broke her leg instead of the leg?
English strongly prefers a possessive adjective with body parts and personal clothing, while French, Spanish, Italian and Russian typically use a definite article. Saying she broke the leg sounds as though the leg belonged to a table or a chair rather than to her. Make the possessive your default with body parts and you will sound natural immediately.
Does the possessive adjective change if the noun is plural?
No, and this is one of the genuinely easy parts of English. My works identically before a singular or plural noun — my book and my books. Never add an -s to the possessive adjective itself. Speakers of Spanish and Italian have to unlearn this, because those languages do make the possessive agree in number.
Do I use his or her for a person whose gender I do not know?
Modern English uses their for a single person of unknown or unspecified gender, and this is now accepted in formal writing as well as speech: Someone left their jacket here. This singular their has been in continuous use for over six hundred years. The older his or her is still correct but sounds heavy when repeated, and using his alone for everyone is now considered outdated.