Spanish Possessive Adjectives

Beginner Spanish Grammar Lesson

The Spanish possessive adjective indicates who or what possesses or owns something, just like in English. For example: This is MY brother. He is YOUR friend.

Possessive adjectives in Spanish have a singular and plural form, according to the thing someone possesses. It is important to remember that the possessive adjectives 'nosotros' and 'vosotros' have a feminine and masculine form. Also note that the possessive adjective formed from 'tú' is 'tu', the same letters but without the written accent, so be careful not to confuse these words. For example, 'Tú eres María y tu hermana es Juana'.

Personal Pronoun
Pronombre Personal
Possessive Adjective
Singular
Possessive Adjective
Plural
yomimis
tutus
el, ella, ustedsusus
vosotros/asvuestro/vuestra vuestros/vuestras
nosotros/asnuestro/nuestranuestros/nuestras
ellos, ellas, ustedessusus

Examples

  • Él es mi hermano Juan, y ellos son mis primos. He is my brother Juan, and they are my cousins.
  • ¿Tu primo es ecuatoriano? ¿Y tus tíos también? Is your cousin Ecuatorian? And your uncle and aunt are Ecuatorian, too?
  • Su amiga es simpática (de él), pero sus primas no son simpáticas. His friend is nice, but his cousins aren't nice.
  • Su madre es bonita (de ella) pero sus hermanas no son bonitas. Her mother is pretty, but her sisters are not pretty.
  • Su casa es muy grande (de usted), pero sus perros son pequeños. Your house is very big, but your dogs are small.
  • Vuestro cabello es rubio y vuestros ojos azules. Your hair is blond and your eyes are blue.
  • Nuestro profesor es muy serio, y nuestras profesoras son muy cómicas. Our male teacher is very serious, and our women teachers are very funny.
  • Su hijo es delgado pero sus hijas son gorditas (de ellos). Their son is thin but their daugthers are chubby.

Spanish possessive adjectives - another video from 121 Spanish

Interactive exercises - Ejercicios interactivos

Read the sentences below and type in the correct family relationship word.

Lee las oraciones y completa con la palabra de parentesco correcta.

Example: What is your name? Cual es ___ nombre? Cual es tu nombre?

Note: Try to use the correct written accents if you can e.g.: á, é, í, ó, ú, ñ, ü.

If you don't know the correct answer, type '?' to reveal it.

1. Maria, how old is your brother? María, ¿cuántos años tiene  hermano?

2. My brother is 12 years old.  hermano tiene doce años.

3. How old are your cousins? ¿Cuántos años tienen  primos?

4. My cousin José is 15 and Julio is 18.  primo José tiene quince y Julio tiene dieciocho.

In questions 5 & 6, some Spanish friends are talking, so you should use the verb forms used in Spain.

5. Where do your friends come from? Muchachos, ¿De dónde son  amigos?

6. Our friends are from Colombia.  amigos son de Colombia.

7. Sir, where does your wife come from? Señor, ¿de dónde es  esposa?

8. My wife is from Costa Rica.  esposa es de Costa Rica.

9. Your (vosotros form) house is very large.   casa es muy grande.

10. Her new shoes are very tight.   nuevos zapatos son muy apretados.

Topics covered in this lesson

Possessive adjectives in Spanish, grammar rules for possessives, expressing possession, how to use possessive adjectives.

 

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