Key points about possessive adjectives in French
Adjectives that show ownership, eg my, your, his, our. They are placed before a noun, eg my book, your jacket. show whom something or someone belongs to.
French possessive adjectives must agree with the The name of a thing such as an object, a place or a person. Nouns are often described as naming words. in number and All French nouns are either masculine or feminine. In French, objects such as a table or car, as well as people, have a grammatical gender..
Mon, ton and son are used instead of ma, ta and sa before a All nouns in French are either masculine or feminine. word starting with a vowel or silent 鈥榟鈥.
Video: Possessive adjectives in French
Watch the video to find out how to use possessive adjectives in French.
Possessive adjectives must agree with their noun - either masculine or feminine, singular or plural.
Possessive adjectives or establishing a sense of belonging.
Just like they do in English, possessive adjectives in French tell us who something or someone belongs to.
They must agree with their noun, which is masculine or feminine, singular or plural.
'My' can be translated to mon, ma or mes.
'Your' can be ton, ta or tes.
'His', 'her', 'its' are son, sa or ses.
And then there's 'our' - notre, notre, nos, 'your' - votre, vos and 'their' - leur, leurs.
Choosing the right one is pretty straightforward:
Un sac, for example, is masculine singular.
J'ai vol茅 son sac.
With a feminine noun like moto, you'd say something like: J'adore ta moto !
Here are a few more:
Levons nos verres.
Il 茅coute leur conversation.
But be careful! The possessive adjective of a feminine word that starts with either a vowel or a silent h uses the masculine form.
Either mon, ton or son so it's easier to pronounce!
Ton histoire est amusante !
Possessive adjectives
Possessive adjectives show whom something or someone belongs to.
To express whom something belongs to (eg my, your, our), use a possessive adjective. In French, the possessive adjective agrees with the gender of the thing owned, not the owner.
| English | Masculine | Feminine | Plural (masculine and feminine) |
|---|---|---|---|
| my | mon | ma | mes |
| your (familiar singular) | ton | ta | tes |
| his/her/its | son | sa | ses |
| our | notre | notre | nos |
| your (formal/plural) | votre | votre | vos |
| their | leur | leur | leurs |
For example:
J鈥榓i parl茅 avec mon grand-p猫re hier. 鈥 I spoke to my grandad yesterday.
C鈥檈st ton stylo ? 鈥 Is it your pen?
Nous allons visiter leur maison demain. 鈥 We鈥檙e going to visit their house tomorrow.
Remember
Mon, ton and son are used instead of ma, ta and sa before a feminine word starting with a vowel or silent鈥'h'. This makes pronunciation easier.
For example:
Mon amie est tr猫s sportive. 鈥 My (female) friend is very sporty.
Possessive adjectives - Mini quiz
Choose the correct possessive adjective to complete this sentence:
Mon/Ma/Mes amis sont tr猫s amusants.
Mes amis sont tr猫s amusants.
My friends are very funny.
Amis is plural, so mes is needed.
Choose the correct possessive adjective to complete this sentence:
Nous avons parl茅 avec notre/nos grand-m猫re hier.
Nous avons parl茅 avec notre grand-m猫re hier.
We spoke to our grandmother yesterday.
骋谤补苍诲-尘猫谤别 is singular, so notre is correct, regardless of whether it is masculine or feminine.
Quiz - Possessive adjectives in French
Practise what you've learned about possessive adjectives with this quiz.
Now you鈥檝e learned about possessive adjectives, why not explore interrogative adverbs in French?
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