French possessive adjectives can be a bit of a puzzle, especially because they change based on gender, plurality and even the first letter of the following noun. Understanding these words is essential for talking about what\u2019s \u201cmine,\u201d \u201cyours,\u201d or \u201ctheirs\u201d in French.<\/p>\n
Below we\u2019ll break down the forms of French possessive adjectives, show you when and how to use them and share tips for mastering the trickier rules.<\/p>\n
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Singular <\/strong>French possessive adjectives:<\/p>\n First person “my” is mon<\/em>, ma <\/em><\/strong>or mes<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n Second person “your” is ton<\/em>, ta <\/em><\/strong>or tes<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n Third person “his” or “her” is son<\/em>, sa <\/em><\/strong>or ses<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n And the plural <\/strong>French possessive adjectives:<\/p>\n First person “our” is notre <\/em><\/strong>or nos<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n Second person “your” is votre <\/em><\/strong>or vos<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n Third person “their” is leur <\/em><\/strong>or leurs<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n Possession indicates who an object belongs to.<\/p>\n It’s important to be able to indicate possession when dealing with food and drinks, or other stuff you don’t want people grabbing out of your hand.<\/p>\n For example, I might say:<\/p>\n “Hey! That’s my<\/strong> coffee!”<\/p>\n You know you better back away because that coffee belongs to me, I intend to drink it and I may get grumpy if you take it from me.<\/p>\n These words are called possessive adjectives<\/strong> because they modify the following noun in the same way that regular adjectives do (i.e., in “the red house,” “house” is a noun and it’s modified by the adjective “red”).<\/p>\n When used properly, French possessive adjectives:<\/p>\n For example, to show that le caf\u00e9<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em>(the coffee) is specifically my<\/em> coffee, I would say mon caf\u00e9<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em>(my coffee).<\/p>\n But, wait! There’s more.<\/p>\n Remember that French possessive adjectives have different forms based on ALL of the following:<\/p>\n Let’s review the forms of the French possessive adjectives:<\/p>\n\nWhen to Use Possessive Adjectives in French\u00a0<\/h2>\n
How to Use Possessive Adjectives in French\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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French Possessive Adjectives in Action<\/h2>\n