Possessive Adjectives in English

Overview

Possessive adjectives show who something belongs to. In English, the possessive adjectives are: my, your, his, her, its, our, their. They always come before a noun and answer the question "whose?"

At the A1 (Beginner) level, possessive adjectives are essential for talking about your belongings, your family, your body, and your life. They appear in nearly every conversation: "What is your name? This is my house. Their car is blue."

One of the most helpful things about English possessive adjectives is that they do not change based on the noun that follows them. Unlike languages such as French or German, where the possessive form must agree with the gender or number of the noun, in English you simply use the same form every time: my book, my books, my house, my car.

How It Works

Subject Pronoun	Possessive Adjective	Example
I	my	My name is Tom.
you	your	Is this your bag?
he	his	His car is red.
she	her	Her name is Anna.
it	its	The cat licked its paw.
we	our	Our house is big.
they	their	Their children are at school.

Key rules

1. Possessive adjectives go before the noun: my book (not book my).
2. They do not change for singular/plural or masculine/feminine nouns: his brother, his sister, his parents -- always "his."
3. They replace articles: you say my car (not the my car or a my car).
4. Every possessive adjective corresponds to a subject pronoun. Match the possessive to the owner, not the thing owned.

The critical distinction: its vs. it's

Form	Meaning	Example
its (no apostrophe)	possessive adjective	The dog wagged its tail.
it's (with apostrophe)	it is / it has	It's a beautiful day.

Examples in Context

English	Note
My name is Sarah.	First person -- introducing yourself
What is your phone number?	Second person -- asking someone
His office is on the third floor.	Male owner
Her birthday is in March.	Female owner
The cat is eating its food.	Animal/thing -- no apostrophe
Our teacher is very kind.	First person plural
Their children are at school.	Third person plural
I forgot my keys.	Common everyday sentence
Is this your jacket?	Checking ownership
She loves her job.	The owner is "she"

Common Mistakes

Confusing "its" and "it's"

• Wrong: The bird spread it's wings.
• Right: The bird spread its wings.
• Why: "It's" always means "it is" or "it has." The possessive form has no apostrophe: "its."

Using the wrong possessive for the owner

• Wrong: Maria loves his dog. (Maria is female)
• Right: Maria loves her dog.
• Why: The possessive adjective matches the owner, not the thing owned. Maria is female, so use "her."

Adding articles before possessive adjectives

• Wrong: This is the my book.
• Right: This is my book.
• Why: Possessive adjectives replace articles. You cannot use both together.

Using subject pronouns instead of possessive adjectives

• Wrong: I name is Tom.
• Right: My name is Tom.
• Why: "I" is a subject pronoun (used as the subject of a verb). "My" is the possessive form used before nouns.

Usage Notes

Possessive adjectives work identically in British and American English.

In casual speech, possessive adjectives are sometimes reduced in pronunciation: "your" may sound like "yer," and "our" may sound like "are." This is natural but should not be reflected in writing.

When the gender of a person is unknown, modern English commonly uses "their" as a singular possessive: "Someone left their umbrella here." This is widely accepted in contemporary English.

Practice Tips

• Match the pairs: Practice connecting each subject pronoun to its possessive adjective. Say them as pairs: "I -- my, you -- your, he -- his, she -- her, it -- its, we -- our, they -- their."
• Describe belongings: Look around and describe who owns what. "This is my phone. That is her cup. Those are their books."
• Its vs. it's drill: Write five sentences with "its" and five with "it's." Read them aloud and check that each one is correct. This distinction becomes automatic with practice.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Subject Pronouns -- possessive adjectives are derived from subject pronouns
• Next steps: Possessive 's -- another way to show possession using nouns instead of pronouns