Easy Learning Italian Grammar (2011)
ADJECTIVES
9. Possessive adjectives
What is a possessive adjective?
In English a possessive adjective is a word such as my, your, his that is used with a noun to show who it belongs to.
How to use possessive adjectives
1 The basics
Unlike English you usually put the definite article (il, la, i, le) in front of the possessive adjective.
As with all adjectives ending in –o, change the ending to:
–a for the feminine singular
–i for the masculine plural
–e for the feminine plural
il mio indirizzo |
my address |
la mia scuola |
my school |
i miei amici |
my friends |
le mie speranze |
my hopes |
For more information on the Definite article, see page 11.
You can also use the indefinite article in front of the possessive adjective in examples like:
una mia amica |
a friend of mine |
un suo studente |
one of her students |
You usually put possessive adjectives in front of the noun they describe.
The following table shows all the possessive adjectives:
Singular |
Plural |
Meaning |
||
Masculine |
Feminine |
Masculine |
Feminine |
|
il mio |
la mia |
i miei |
le mie |
my |
il tuo |
la tua |
i tuoi |
le tue |
your (belonging to someone you call tu) |
il suo |
la sua |
i suoi |
le sue |
his; her; its; your (belonging to someone you call lei) |
il nostro |
la nostra |
i nostri |
le nostre |
our |
il vostro |
la vostra |
i vostri |
le vostre |
your (belonging to people you call voi) |
il loro |
la loro |
i loro |
le loro |
their |
For more information on How to say ‘you’ in Italian, see page 42.
Dove sono le mie chiavi? |
Where are my keys? |
Luca ha perso il suo portafoglio. |
Luca has lost his wallet. |
Ecco i nostri passaporti. |
Here are our passports. |
Qual è la vostra camera? |
Which is your room? |
Il tuo amico ti aspetta. |
Your friend is waiting for you. |
Tip
Possessive adjectives agree with the noun they go with, NOT with the person who is the owner.
Anna ha perso il suo cellulare. |
Anna has lost her mobile phone. |
Marco ha trovato la sua agenda. |
Marco’s found his diary. |
Le ragazze hanno i loro biglietti. |
The girls have got their tickets. |
Note that possessive adjectives aren’t normally used with parts of the body. You usually use il, la, and so on (the definite article) instead.
Mi sono fatto male alla gamba. |
I’ve hurt my leg. |
Si sta lavando i capelli. |
She’s washing her hair. |
For more information on the Definite article, see page 11.
Key points
Italian possessive adjectives agree with the nouns they describe.
Italian possessive adjectives are usually preceded by an article.
Possessive adjectives are not usually used with parts of the body.
2 How to use possessive adjectives when talking about relatives
To say my mother, your father, her husband, his wife and so on, use the possessive adjective without the definite article.
mia madre |
my mother |
tuo padre |
Your father |
suo marito |
her husband |
sua moglie |
his wife |
mia sorella |
my sister |
tuo fratello |
Your brother |
This applies to all family members in the singular, except for the words mamma (meaning mum) and babbo and papà (both meaning dad).
la mia mamma |
my mum |
Maria e il suo babbo |
Maria and her dad |
Note that if you describe a family member with an adjective, for example my dear wife, her younger sister, you DO use the definite article with the possessive.
il mio caro marito |
my dear husband |
il suo fratello maggiore |
his older brother |
You DO use the definite article with the possessive adjective when you’re referring to family members in the plural.
Sandro e i suoi fratelli |
Sandro and his brothers |
Laura e le sue cognate |
Laura and her sisters-in-law |
Key points
Use the possessive adjective without the definite article when talking about family members in the singular.
Use the possessive adjective with the definite article when talking about family members in the plural.