Possessivpronomen (Possessives: my, your, his, her)
Possessives show who something belongs to: mein Buch (my book), deine Tasche (your bag). Like English my and your, they come before the noun. They take the same endings as ein and kein, and the ending depends on the gender, number and case of the noun that follows, not on the owner. English grammars often call them possessive adjectives; German grammars call them Possessivartikel.
| Person | Possessive | English |
|---|---|---|
| ich | mein | my |
| du | dein | your (informal) |
| er | sein | his, its |
| sie (she) | ihr | her, its |
| es | sein | its |
| wir | unser | our |
| ihr | euer | your (informal plural) |
| sie (they) | ihr | their |
| Sie | Ihr | your (polite) |
Endings in the nominative
In the nominative, the possessive has no ending before masculine and neuter nouns and adds -e before feminine and plural nouns.
| Owner | der Vater | das Kind | die Mutter | die Eltern (plural) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ich | mein Vater | mein Kind | meine Mutter | meine Eltern |
| du | dein Vater | dein Kind | deine Mutter | deine Eltern |
| wir | unser Vater | unser Kind | unsere Mutter | unsere Eltern |
| ihr | euer Vater | euer Kind | eure Mutter | eure Eltern |
euer drops its second e when an ending is added: eure Mutter, euren Vater. unser keeps it: unsere Mutter.
Heute fährt meine Schwester nach Hamburg.My sister is going to Hamburg today.
Das ist meine Tasche.That's my bag.
Wo sind seine Bücher?Where are his books?
Ist das dein Kuli?Is that your pen?
Common mistake
Lisa und ihre Bruder wohnen in Bonn. is wrong; correct: Lisa und ihr Bruder wohnen in Bonn.
The -e does not show that the owner is female. The ending depends on the noun: Bruder is masculine, so ihr has no ending in the nominative.
Endings in all four cases
Possessives take the endings of ein in the singular and of keine in the plural; see accusative and dative.
| Case | der Vater | das Kind | die Mutter | die Bücher (plural) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominativ | mein Vater | mein Kind | meine Mutter | meine Bücher |
| Akkusativ | meinen Vater | mein Kind | meine Mutter | meine Bücher |
| Dativ | meinem Vater | meinem Kind | meiner Mutter | meinen Büchern |
| Genitiv | meines Vaters | meines Kindes | meiner Mutter | meiner Bücher |
Hast du meine Socken gesehen?Have you seen my socks?
Ich habe mein Auto verkauft.I've sold my car.
Ich lade meine Freunde zu meiner Geburtstagsparty ein.I'm inviting my friends to my birthday party.
Die Mutter meiner Schülerin ist Ärztin.My pupil's mother is a doctor.
sein or ihr: his, her and its
As in English, the choice between sein and ihr depends on the owner: sein for a masculine or neuter owner (er, es), ihr for a feminine owner (sie) and for several owners (they). For things, the grammatical gender of the owner decides, so English its can be sein or ihr. The ending still depends on the noun that follows.
Peter sucht seine Brille.Peter is looking for his glasses.
Anna sucht ihren Schlüssel.Anna is looking for her key.
Der Baum verliert seine Blätter.The tree is losing its leaves.
Die Firma hat ihren Sitz in Köln.The company has its head office in Cologne.
Die Kinder spielen mit ihrem Hund.The children are playing with their dog.
Common mistake
Die Stadt ist bekannt für seinen Dom. is wrong; correct: Die Stadt ist bekannt für ihren Dom.
English uses its for every thing, but German follows the gender of the owner: die Stadt is feminine, so its is ihr. The ending -en comes from the noun: der Dom in the accusative after für.
The polite Ihr (your) is always written with a capital I, like Sie: Wie ist Ihr Name? (What is your name?) With a small i, ihr means her or their. With parts of the body, German often uses the article instead of a possessive: Ich wasche mir die Hände. (I wash my hands.); see reflexive verbs.
Anna's book: the -s of names
With names, German adds -s, normally without an apostrophe: Annas Buch (Anna's book), Peters Auto. Names ending in -s, -ß, -x or -z take only an apostrophe: Thomas' Auto. With other nouns, German uses the genitive after the noun or, in everyday speech, von + dative: das Auto meines Vaters or das Auto von meinem Vater (my father's car).
mine, yours: possessives without a noun
Without a noun, like English mine and yours, the possessive takes the endings of der, die, das: Das ist nicht dein Schlüssel, das ist meiner. See possessive pronouns: mine, yours.
Check yourself
Written by: Fatih Ün, German teacher · Last updated: