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Ch 12

Possessive Adjectives

my, your, his, her, its, our, their

What are possessive adjectives?

Possessive adjectives tell you whose something is. They come before a noun.

I → my
My name is Maria.
you → your
What is your name?
he → his
His name is Tom.
she → her
Her name is Anna.
it → its
The dog likes its ball.
we → our
Our house is small.
they → their
Their car is new.

Word order — before the noun

possessive adjective + noun ✓
my + family
my family · my mother · my father
her + name
her name · her book · her sister
our + house
our house · our dog · our teacher
The possessive adjective never changes for plural nouns: my books, their friends (NOT mys, theirs).

His vs Her — common confusion

his (for a man / boy)
Tom has a sister. His sister is tall.
My father loves his car.
her (for a woman / girl)
Anna has a brother. Her brother is short.
My mother loves her garden.
The possessive adjective matches the owner, not the thing owned. His mother = the mother of a man.

Possessive adjective vs subject pronoun

Subject pronoun (does action)
I live here. → My house is here.
Possessive adjective (whose)
She reads. → Her book is interesting.
I have my phone.
You have your phone.
They have their phones.

Common mistakes

She name is Anna.
→
Her name is Anna.
need possessive: she → her
Tom and her sister.
→
Tom and his sister.
Tom = man → his
It's car is red.
→
Its car is red. (NO apostrophe)
"its" = possessive · "it's" = "it is"
They car is new.
→
Their car is new.
need possessive: they → their

Recap

All 7 forms
my · your · his · her · its · our · their
before the noun
Owner-based
his = man's · her = woman's
Tom's sister = his sister
No plural change
my books, their friends
never "mys" or "theirs"
its ≠ it's
its = possessive · it's = it is
no apostrophe in "its"
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