All grammar topics

Possessive Articles: mein, dein, sein, ihr

A1

My, your, his, her — the little words that let you talk about your family, your city, and your stuff.

One per pronoun

Every personal pronoun has a matching possessive: ich → mein, du → dein, and so on. They behave exactly like 'ein' — which means the masculine and neuter forms look alike, and feminine/plural take an extra -e: 'mein Bruder' but 'meine Schwester'.

Possessive articles
OwnerPossessiveExample
ichmeinmein Handy
dudeindein Auto
erseinsein Buch
sieihrihr Kind
esseinsein Haus
wirunserunser Apartment
ihreuereuer Zug
sie / Sieihr / Ihrihr Hotel / Ihr Kaffee

Beispiele — examples in context

Mein Bruder heißt Max, und seine Frau heißt Maria.

My brother is called Max, and his wife is called Maria.

Tipp: sein = his (or its), ihr = her (or their).

Euer Apartment ist toll! Wo ist unsere Pizza?

Your (guys') apartment is great! Where is our pizza?

Tipp: euer stays euer before a noun: 'euer Apartment'.

The -e switch: meine, deine, seine

For feminine, plural — and any noun in the accusative that isn't masculine — the possessive adds -e: 'meine Familie', 'deine Freunde', 'ihre Eltern'. Same logic as 'ein/eine'. If you already say 'eine Lampe', you say 'meine Lampe'. One rule, no exceptions at A1.

Beispiele — examples in context

Meine Mutter und dein Vater arbeiten zusammen.

My mother and your father work together.

Tipp: Mutter and Vater are both people — but only 'Mutter' is feminine, so only she gets the -e.

Ich sehe deine Schwester und deinen Bruder.

I see your sister and your brother.

Tipp: Bruder is masculine + accusative → deinen, exactly like 'einen'.

Pro tip: sein vs. ihr — the classic mix-up

'sein' belongs to er/es, 'ihr' belongs to sie (and to 'they'). English 'his/her' tracks the person's gender; German tracks the OWNER, then takes the GENDER OF THE THING: 'Er liebt seine Katze' (his cat, die Katze → seine), 'Sie liebt ihre Katze' (her cat → ihre). The thing's article decides the ending, the owner decides the word.

Beispiele — examples in context

Er liebt seine Katze. Sie liebt ihre Katze.

He loves his cat. She loves her cat.

Tipp: Same cat ending (seine/ihre, because die Katze is feminine) — different owner word.

Ich besuche meinen Onkel und meine Tante.

I'm visiting my uncle and my aunt.

Tipp: Onkel masculine → meinen, Tante feminine → meine. The noun's gender steers the ending.

Formal Ihr: the capital letter that matters

For formal 'Sie', the possessive is 'Ihr' — always capitalized, and it behaves like 'mein': 'Ist das Ihr Auto?' In an email or at the doctor's office, this tiny capital letter is the difference between professional and accidentally intimate.

Beispiele — examples in context

Wo ist Ihr Termin, Frau Schneider?

Where is your appointment, Ms. Schneider?

Tipp: Capital I = formal. Lowercase 'ihr' = her/their/you-all. German loves this trap.