Possessive Adjectives in Catalan

In Brief

Catalan normally expresses “my,” “your,” and similar ideas with a definite article plus a possessive: el meu llibre (“my book”), la teva clau (“your key”). Both words agree with the thing possessed, not with its owner: el seu fill, la seva filla, els seus fills, les seves filles. The third-person forms seu/seva/seus/seves can mean “his,” “her,” “its,” “their,” or formal “your,” so context often supplies the owner.

Overview

A possessive shows a relationship such as ownership, family connection, or association: el meu cotxe (“my car”), la seva germana (“his/her sister”), or la nostra ciutat (“our city”). The word being described is a noun (a word for a person, place, thing, or idea), such as cotxe, germana, or ciutat.

This is an A1 topic because possessives appear immediately in introductions, descriptions of family, and conversations about everyday objects. The basic pattern is simple: choose the form for the owner, then make it match the possessed noun in gender (masculine or feminine) and number (singular or plural).

For an English-speaking learner, two differences matter from the start. First, Catalan normally includes the equivalent of “the”: el meu gat, literally “the my cat.” Second, English chooses between “his” and “her” according to the owner, but Catalan chooses the ending according to the owned noun. A woman and a man can therefore both say el meu llibre because llibre is masculine.

How It Works

The core pattern

The standard beginner pattern is:

definite article + possessive + noun

• el meu gat — my cat
• la teva casa — your house
• els seus fills — his/her/their children
• les nostres amigues — our friends (all female)

The definite article and the possessive both match the noun:

Noun type	Article	“my”	Example
Masculine singular	el	meu	el meu gat
Feminine singular	la	meva	la meva gata
Masculine plural	els	meus	els meus gats
Feminine plural	les	meves	les meves gates

The owner does not control these endings. Compare:

• Marta: el meu germà — my brother
• Joan: el meu germà — my brother
• Marta: la meva germana — my sister
• Joan: la meva germana — my sister

In each pair, the speaker changes but the possessive does not. What matters is germà versus germana.

Full set of common possessives

Owner	Masculine singular	Feminine singular	Masculine plural	Feminine plural	Basic English meaning
jo	el meu	la meva	els meus	les meves	my
tu	el teu	la teva	els teus	les teves	your (one person, informal)
ell, ella, vostè	el seu	la seva	els seus	les seves	his, her, formal your
nosaltres	el nostre	la nostra	els nostres	les nostres	our
vosaltres	el vostre	la vostra	els vostres	les vostres	your (more than one person)
ells, elles, vostès	el seu	la seva	els seus	les seves	their, formal plural your

English “its” is also usually expressed with seu/seva/seus/seves when a possessive is natural: L’empresa ha canviat la seva política (“The company has changed its policy”). As in English, context determines which third-person owner is intended.

Notice that nostres and vostres have one plural form each for both genders:

• els nostres veïns — our male or mixed-gender neighbors
• les nostres veïnes — our female neighbors
• els vostres llibres — your books
• les vostres claus — your keys

The article still displays gender even when nostres or vostres does not change.

Choosing the right form of “your”

English uses “your” in several situations, but Catalan distinguishes the person being addressed:

Who is addressed?	Possessive	Example
One person addressed as tu	teu/teva/teus/teves	la teva adreça
One person addressed as formal vostè	seu/seva/seus/seves	la seva adreça
Several people addressed as vosaltres	vostre/vostra/vostres	la vostra adreça
Several people addressed as formal vostès	seu/seva/seus/seves	la seva adreça

Because formal vostè and vostès use third-person grammar, their possessives are the same as “his,” “her,” and “their.” In a real conversation, the person being addressed usually makes the meaning clear.

Articles, contractions, and elision

Unlike English, Catalan generally keeps the definite article before these possessives, including with close family members:

• el meu pare — my father
• la seva mare — his/her/their mother
• els nostres avis — our grandparents

When a preposition comes before the phrase, the usual Catalan contractions apply. A preposition is a short linking word such as “to” or “of.”

• Parlo del meu germà. — I am talking about my brother. (de + el = del)
• Dona-ho als teus amics. — Give it to your friends. (a + els = als)
• He vingut amb la meva cosina. — I came with my cousin.

Do not change the article to l’ merely because the noun begins with a vowel. The article stands directly before the possessive, so the standard forms are el meu amic and la meva amiga, not l’meu amic or l’meva amiga.

Possessives after the noun

A possessive can also follow the noun. This is especially common when another determiner already introduces the noun, or when the meaning is “a … of mine/yours.” A determiner is a word placed with a noun to identify or limit it, such as “the,” “a,” “this,” or “that.”

• un amic meu — a friend of mine
• una idea teva — an idea of yours
• aquesta foto nostra — this photo of ours
• aquell costum seu — that habit of his/hers/theirs

Do not add the ordinary definite article to the possessive in this position: un amic meu, not un amic el meu. The possessive still agrees with the noun: una amiga meva, uns amics meus, unes amigues meves.

When the noun is omitted

Possessive forms can stand in for an understood noun. In grammar, this is often called pronominal use (the form replaces a noun that the listener can recover).

• El meu és blau; el teu és verd. — Mine is blue; yours is green.
• Prefereixo la nostra. — I prefer ours.
• Aquest paraigua és meu. — This umbrella is mine.
• Aquestes claus són teves? — Are these keys yours?

With an omitted but understood noun, an article may remain: el meu, la teva. After ser (“to be”), however, the possessive commonly appears without an article: és meu, són teves.

Examples in Context

Catalan	English	Note
El meu gat dorm al sofà.	My cat sleeps on the sofa.	Masculine singular possessed noun
La teva casa és molt lluminosa.	Your house is very bright.	Informal singular “your”
Els seus fills van a la mateixa escola.	His/her/their children go to the same school.	Seus is ambiguous without context
Les nostres amigues arriben demà.	Our friends arrive tomorrow.	Feminine plural
On són les meves ulleres?	Where are my glasses?	The plural noun requires meves
El vostre tren surt a les nou.	Your train leaves at nine.	Addressed to more than one person
Senyora Puig, aquesta és la seva habitació.	Ms. Puig, this is your room.	Formal singular “your”
Coneixes el meu pare?	Do you know my father?	The article is used with a family noun
Parlem dels nostres plans.	We are talking about our plans.	de + els = dels
És una companya meva de la feina.	She is a colleague of mine from work.	Post-noun possessive after una
Aquesta decisió és teva.	This decision is yours.	Possessive after ser
La meva motxilla és aquí; la seva és allà.	My backpack is here; his/hers/theirs is there.	The second noun is understood
Han venut casa seva.	They have sold their home.	Common post-noun pattern with casa
La Júlia busca les seves claus.	Júlia is looking for her keys.	The keys control feminine plural agreement
El director ha explicat la seva proposta.	The director has explained his proposal.	Context identifies the owner

Common Mistakes

Matching the possessive to the owner

• Wrong: En Marc busca la seu jaqueta.
• Right: En Marc busca la seva jaqueta.
• Why: Jaqueta is feminine singular, so it requires seva. Marc’s gender does not affect the ending.

Dropping the article in the basic pattern

• Wrong: Meu germà viu a Girona.
• Right: El meu germà viu a Girona.
• Why: In ordinary modern Catalan, the stressed possessive normally has a definite article before a noun. Restricted forms such as mon germà exist, but they are not the neutral pattern to copy at A1.

Translating every English “your” as teu

• Wrong: Senyora Roca, aquí té el teu passaport.
• Right: Senyora Roca, aquí té el seu passaport.
• Why: Formal singular vostè takes third-person forms, including seu. Use teu with informal singular tu.

Using a singular possessive with a plural noun

• Wrong: les meva claus
• Right: les meves claus
• Why: Article, possessive, and noun must all be feminine plural.

Choosing seu to mean only “his”

• Misleading: La Paula parla amb el seu germà. = “Paula talks to his brother.”
• Better: La Paula parla amb el seu germà. = “Paula talks to her brother.”
• Why: Seu does not itself mean specifically “his.” The sentence context points to Paula as the owner; the masculine form appears because germà is masculine.

Combining two determiners incorrectly

• Wrong: un el meu amic
• Right: un amic meu
• Why: When the meaning is “a friend of mine,” use the indefinite article before the noun and place the possessive after it.

Usage Notes

Resolving the ambiguity of seu

The forms seu, seva, seus, and seves cover several English meanings. Usually there is no problem because the conversation already identifies the owner. If clarity matters, Catalan can use a phrase with de:

• la seva opinió — his/her/their/your formal opinion
• l’opinió d’ella — her opinion
• l’opinió d’ells — their opinion
• l’opinió de vostè — your opinion (formal)

These expanded phrases are useful for contrast or disambiguation, but repeating them everywhere sounds heavy. Start with seu and make the owner explicit only when the context does not.

Possession is broader than legal ownership

As in English, these forms express many relationships: relatives (la meva tia), body parts (les meves mans), work (el nostre projecte), and habitual association (el seu metge). The best English translation may vary even though Catalan uses the same possessive system.

Catalan also sometimes prefers an article or an object pronoun where English naturally uses a possessive, especially with body parts and routine actions: Em rento les mans (“I wash my hands”). Do not assume that every English “my” must become meu/meva.

Spoken and regional variation

The full forms taught here—el meu, la teva, els nostres, and so on—are standard and widely understood. Pronunciation varies by dialect, and some varieties retain short possessives more actively than others. For reliable everyday production, the full forms are the safest starting point.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

You do not need to master the following forms at A1, but you will encounter them in family language, set expressions, formal writing, and literature.

Short or unstressed possessives

Catalan has a restricted older set traditionally called unstressed possessives:

Owner	Masculine singular	Feminine singular	Masculine plural	Feminine plural
my	mon	ma	mos	mes
your (informal singular)	ton	ta	tos	tes
his/her/its/their	son	sa	sos	ses

They appear mainly with certain family terms and in established expressions: mon pare, ma mare, ton germà, sa tia. Their frequency and naturalness vary by region and register. They do not take the article: mon pare, not el mon pare. A beginner can understand them while continuing to say el meu pare and la meva mare.

Llur and llurs

Formal or literary Catalan may use llur for one possessed item and llurs for several when there are multiple third-person owners:

• Els alumnes van presentar llur projecte. — The students presented their project.
• Els alumnes van presentar llurs projectes. — The students presented their projects.

Unlike seu, llur marks the owner as plural, but it agrees only in number with what is possessed. In ordinary conversation, speakers generally use seu/seva/seus/seves or a de phrase instead.

Position can add contrast

The neutral phrase is usually el meu llibre. A post-noun form can classify or contrast the relationship: un llibre meu (“a book of mine”), aquesta idea vostra (“this idea of yours”). Certain compact expressions also favor the noun first, notably casa meva, casa teva, and casa seva. Learn these as common patterns rather than treating all pre-noun and post-noun positions as freely interchangeable.

Vós and vostre

The respectful pronoun vós, found in some formal, traditional, religious, or regional contexts, uses vostre/vostra/vostres: la vostra carta. This differs from vostè, which uses seu/seva/seus/seves. Most beginners need tu, vostè, and vosaltres first.

Practice Tips

1. Build four-form chains. Take one owner and change only the noun: el meu llibre, la meva llibreta, els meus llibres, les meves llibretes. This trains agreement more effectively than memorizing “my = meu.”
2. Label real objects in full phrases. Say el meu telèfon, les meves claus, la nostra cuina, and els nostres llibres. Always include the article so the complete Catalan pattern becomes automatic.
3. Practise ambiguous owners. Read a sentence with seu and ask, “Whose?” Then rewrite it with d’ell, d’ella, d’ells, or de vostè. This develops both comprehension and the ability to clarify.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Definite Articles — supplies el, la, els, and les, which normally introduce possessive phrases.
• Next step: Family and People — puts possessives into high-frequency phrases such as el meu pare and la teva mare.