Possessive Pronouns in Spanish (pronombres posesivos)
Learn Spanish: Possessive Pronouns in Spanish
In this learn Spanish grammar lesson, we go over possessive pronouns in Spanish. Possessive Pronouns also describe possession -- they are the same as the long form of the Spanish possessive adjective that you learned in the previous lesson. But, Spanish possessive pronouns are always used with a definite article (el, la, los, las).
Possessive Pronoun Forms
| Subject Pronoun |
Poss. Pronoun (singular) |
Poss. Pronoun (plural) |
English Translation |
| yo |
el mío, la mía |
los míos, las mías |
mine |
| tú |
el tuyo, la tuya |
los tuyos, las tuyas |
yours |
| él/ella/usted |
el suyo, la suya |
los suyos, las suyas |
his/hers/yours |
| nosotros |
el nuestro, la nuestra |
los nuestros, las nuestras |
ours |
| vosotros |
el vuestro, la vuestra |
los vuestros, las vuestras |
yours |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes |
el suyo, la suya |
los suyos, las suyas |
theirs/yours |
Examples:
Mi auto y el tuyo.
My car and yours.
Tu casa es más grande que la mía.
Your house is bigger than mine.
Nuestra ciudad no es tan peligrosa como la suya.
Our city isn't as dangerous as theirs.
Mi computadora no funciona bien. ¿Puedo usar la tuya?
My computer isn't working well. Can I use yours?
Note:
Basically, what you see is that we are avoiding not repeating the noun by replacing the possessive adjective + noun with the possessive pronoun. For example:
Tu casa es más grande que mi casa. (the possessive adj. + noun).
Tu casa es más grande que la mía. (the possessive pronoun).
Note:
Because él/ella/usted/ellos/ellas/ustedes all use the same poss. pronoun, when the context is not clear, you may have to clarify your message.
Use the definite article + de + the pronoun (él/ella/usted/ellos/ellas/ustedes) or the name of the person (for even further clarification).
--Tengo dos estudiantes, Marco y Marcia. Su madre está enferma.
I have two students, Marco and Marcia. His/Her mother is sick.
-- ¿La de él o la de ella?
His or hers?
-- La de ella.
Hers.
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