Possessive

Adjectives
French 1
Waters

Created by Diane Waters 2010

What is a possessive adjective?

A possessive adjective is a word which
describes a noun by showing who
possesses that noun.
Whose house is that? Its my house.
My shows who possesses the noun house.
The posessor is me. The object possessed
is house.

The way we do it in ENGLISH

Like subject pronouns (I, you, he/she, we,
etc.), possessive adjectives are identified
according to the person they represent.

Singular Possessor
1st person
2nd person

my
you
masculine

3rd person

feminine
neuter

his
her
its

Plural Possessor
1st person
2nd person
3rd person

our
your
their

A possessive adjective changes

according to the possessor, regardless
of the object possessed.

Is that Johns house? Yes, it is his house.

Is that Marys house? Yes, it is her house.

Although the object possessed is the same

(house), different possessive adjectives (his and
her) are used because the possessors are different
(John and Mary).

The French Way

Like English, a French possessive
adjective changes according to the
possessor, but unlike English it also
AGREES, like all French adjectives, in
GENDER and NUMBER with the noun
possessed.

 For example, in the phrase mon frre (my

brother) the 1st person singular possessor
(my) is indicated by the first letter of the
possessive adjective, m-, and the gender
and number of the noun possessed, frre
(brother), which is masculine singular, is
reflected in the masculine singular ending
-on.
Let us see what happens when we change
my brother to my sister.

I love my sister.
Jaime ma soeur.
fem. sing. ending
1st pers. sing. possessor
The first letter m- remains the same because the
possessor is still the 1st person, but the ending
changes to a to agree with soeur which is
feminine.

Examples of Agreement
Jaime ma soeur.
Jaime mon frre.
Jaime mes animaux.
M indicates the 1st person posesssive adjective.
-a represents the feminine gender, single noun
-on represents the masculine gender, single
noun
-es represents the masc./fem. gender, plural
noun

Singular Possessor
my, your (tu-form), his her, its
In French, each of these possessive
adjectives has three forms depending on
the gender and number of the noun
possessed: the masculine singular, the
feminine singular, and the plural (the same
for both genders).

1. Indicate the possessor with

the first letter of the possessive
adjective.
My
Your
His
Hers
Its

mts-

2. Choose the ending according to the

gender and number of the noun possessed.
(This is called AGREEMENT.)

If the noun possessed is MASCULINE

(or feminine in front of a vowel sound)
add on.
Anne lit mon livre.
Anne reads my book.
(Masc. Sing. Noun)

Anne lit ton livre.

Anne lit son livre

noun possessed

Anne reads your book.

Anne reads her/his book.

Feminine, in front of a vowel sound.

Paul connat mon amie.

Paul knows my friend.

fem. sing. Noun

begins with vowel

Paul connat ton amie.

Paul connat son amie.

noun possessed

Paul knows your friend.

Paul knows his/her friend.

Feminine and Plural

Possessive Adjectives
If the noun possessed is feminine singular
beginning with a consonant
add -a
Paul lit ma lettre.
Paul lit ta lettre.
Paul lit sa lettre.

If the noun possessed is plural

Anne lit mes livres.
Paul lit tes lettres.
Elle lit ses livres.

add es

Plural Possessor
our, your (vous-form), their
In French, each of these possessive
adjectives has only two forms depending
on the number of the noun possessed;
that is, whether the noun possessed is
singular or plural.

Noun possessed is singular:

notre, votre, leur
Marie est notre fille.

Mary is our daughter.

possessor
is plural
noun possessed
is singular

Paul lit votre lettre.

Ils lisent leur lettre.

Paul reads your letter.

They read their letter.

Noun possessed is plural:

nos, vos, leurs
Les parents sont nos amis.
The parents are our friends.
owner is
plural
noun possessed
is plural

Anne lit vos livres.

Elles lisent leurs lettres.

Anne reads your books.

They read their letters.

**Careful: Notes on YOU**

Although VOTRE and VOS are classified as the
second person plural they can also refer to just one
person when used as a formal form of address
(such as when speaking to your teacher).
Remember to use the same form of YOU, either
familiar or formal, for the verb and the possessive
adjective:
You are reading your book would be either
Tu lis ton livre or
Vous lisez votre livre.

Possessive Adjectives: A Summary

Singular Possessor
masculine

My

feminine + vowel
feminine

Plural Possessor
Singular
plural
Mon
Mon
Ma

Ton
your
masculine
(tu form) feminine + vowel Ton
feminine
masculine

His,Her, Its

fem. + vowel
feminine

Mes

Tes

Ta

Son
Son
Sa

Ses

Plural
Possessor

Noun Possessed
Singular

Plural

Our

Notre

Nos

Your (vous form)

Votre

Vos

Their

Leur

leurs

Your Turn!

His book is in his backpack.

Son livre est dans son sac dos.

Our house is white.

Notre maison est blanche.

My family likes to hula.

Ma famille aime hula.

Your dogs are cute.

Tes chiens sont mignons.