Possessive

Adjectives
How to Show Possession in Spanish
What are Possessive Adjectives?
• Possessive Adjectives are words that show ownership or
possession.
• Let’s look at this chart of Possessive Adjectives in English:

belongs to me my belongs to us our

belongs to you your belongs to y’all your (y’all’s)
belongs to him his belongs to them their
belongs to her her
Possessive Adjectives in Spanish
• Possessive Adjectives also exist in Spanish, but with slight
differences from their English counterparts.
• Here are the Spanish Shortform Possessive Adjectives:

belongs to nuestro/a
belongs to yo mi / mis nosotros nuestros/as
belongs to vuestro/a
belongs to tú tu / tus vosotros vuestros/as
belongs to él su / sus belongs to ellos su / sus
belongs to ella su / sus belongs to ellas su / sus
belongs to Vd. su / sus belongs to Vds. su / sus
Let’s start with MY
• If something belongs to yo,
use mi.
• For example:
• my pencil – mi lápiz
• my dad – mi papá

• However, if the
things/people is PLURAL,
you must use mis.
• For example:
• my books – mis libros
• my cousins – mis primos • Ella es mi madre.
Let’s move on to YOUR
• If something belongs to tú,
use tu.
• For example:
• your mom – tu mamá
• your pen – tu bolígrafo

• However, if the
things/people is PLURAL,
you must use tus.
• For example:
• your brothers – tus hermanos
• your flags – tus banderas
• Juan es tu amigo.
Let’s discuss HIS, HER, and THEIR
• If something belongs to él, ella,
usted, ellos, ellas, or ustedes use
su.
• For example:
• his book – su libro
• her grandma – su abuela
• your car – su carro
• their house – su casa
• y’all’s class – su clase

• However, if the things/people is

PLURAL, you must use sus.
• For example: • Su mascota es un perro.
• his parents – sus padres
• their tables – sus mesas • Su mascota es un gato.
SU could be potentially confusing…
it can mean his, her, or their it can also mean your or y’all’s

“La Sra. Rodríguez es su profesora.”

could mean:
• Mrs. Rodríguez is his teacher.
• Mrs. Rodríguez is her teacher.
• Mrs. Rodríguez is your teacher.
• Mrs. Rodríguez is y’all’s teacher.
• Mrs. Rodríguez is their teacher.
How do I choose between SU and SUS?
Remember: it’s the objects being possessed that determine if
you’re going to use SU or SUS, not the people possessing.

Sus collares.
Su equipo favorito.
Su libro. Their collars.
Their favorite team.
His book. Sus pesas.
His weights.
 Let’s continue with OUR
• If something belongs to
nosotros, use nuestro.
• For example:
• our teacher – nuestro profesor

• However, nuestro has four

forms, depending on the
object being possessed.
• nuestro amigo
• nuestra madre
• nuestros relojes
• Nuestra escuela es Sandalwood.
• nuestras computadoras
Let’s practice!
a) my computer ________ computadora
mi
b) his cat ________
su gato
c) her parents ________ padres
sus
d) our books ________ libros
nuestros
e) y’all’s house ________ casa
su
f) their radio ________ radio
su
g) our desk ________ escritorio
nuestro
h) your cousins ________ primas
tus
i) their bicycles ________ bicicletas
sus
j) my sisters ________ hermanas
mis
More practice!
a) his brothers ________ hermanos
sus
b) my family ________
mi familia
c) our windows ________ ventanas
nuestras
d) your phone ________ teléfono
tu
e) her dogs ________ perros
sus
f) their house ________ casa
su
g) our classroom ________ sala de clase
nuestra
h) y’all’s bookbags ________ mochilas
sus
i) his parents ________ padres
sus
j) your favorite music ________ música favorita
tu
Let us learn a different type of
Possessive Adjectives.
• The Longform possessive adjectives also show possession,
but are governed by different placement rules.
• Here are the Longform Possessive Adjectives in English:

belongs to me mine belongs to us ours

belongs to you yours belongs to y’all yours (y’all’s)
belongs to him his belongs to them theirs
belongs to her hers
Longform Possessive Adjectives in Spanish
• Longform Possessive Adjectives also exist in Spanish.
• Here are the Spanish Longform Possessive Adjectives:

mío / mía belongs to nuestro/a

belongs to yo
míos / mías nosotros nuestros/as
tuyo / tuya belongs to vuestro/a
belongs to tú
tuyos / tuyas vosotros vuestros/as
belongs to él belongs to ellos
suyo / suya suyo / suya
belongs to ella belongs to ellas
belongs to Vd. suyos / suyas belongs to Vds. suyos / suyas
 But, what is the difference?
• Shortform possessive
adjectives are written
BEFORE the noun being
possessed.
• You DO NOT write articles,
such as el, la, los, las, un,
una, unos, or unas.
• Example:
• Juan es mi amigo.
• Juan is my friend.
• Sus casas son grandes.
• His houses are big.
• Longform possessive
adjectives are written AFTER
the noun being possessed,
not before.
• You MUST write articles, such
as el, la, los, las, un, una, unos,
or unas.
• Example:
• Juan es un amigo mío.
• Juan is a friend of mine.
• Las casas suyas son grandes.
• Those houses of his are big.
 Let’s start with MINE
• If something belongs to yo, use
mío.
• For example:
• El lápiz es mío. – The pencil is mine.
• Un primo mío es doctor. – A cousin of
mine is a doctor.

• However, if the things/people is

FEMINITE and/or PLURAL, you must
use change mío appropriately.
• For example:
• The computer is mine.
• Este es Carlos. La
• La computadora es mía. madre suya se llama
• Some friends of mine live in Spain. Margarita.
• Unos amigos míos viven en España.
 Let’s continue with YOURS
• If something belongs to tú, use tuyo.
• For example:
• El libro es tuyo. – The book is yours.
• Un hermano tuyo es inteligente. – A
brother of yours is smart.

• However, if the things/people is

FEMINITE and/or PLURAL, you must
use change tuyo appropriately.
• For example:
• The scarves are yours.
• Las bufandas son tuyas.
• ¡Los amigos tuyos son
• A teacher of yours eats at 11:00. muy simpáticos!
• Una profesra tuya come a las 11:00.
Let’s discuss HIS, HERS, and THEIRS
• If something belongs to él, ella,
usted, ellos, ellas, or ustedes use
suyo.
• For example:
• a book of his – un libro suyo
• a grandma of hers - una abuela suya
• a car of yours – un carro suyo
• a house of theirs – una casa suya
• a class of y’all’s – una clase suya

• However, if the things/people is

FEMININE or PLURAL, you must use
change suyo accordingly.
• Las mascotas suyas son
• For example:
• tables of theirs – las mesas suyas
un perro y un gato.
 You will notice that OURS is the same.
• If something belongs to
nosotros, use nuestro.
• For example:
• a teacher of ours – un profesor
nuestro

• However, in the Possessive

Longform, nuestro must be
written after the noun.
• un amigo nuestro
• la madres nuestra
• los relojes nuestros • La escuela nuestra es Sandalwood.
• las computadoras nuestras
Let’s practice!
a) mía
a computer of mine una computadora ________
b) a cat of his suyo
un gato ________
c) parents of hers suyos
los padres ________
d) some books of ours nuestros
unos libros ________
e) a house of y’all’s suya
una casa ________
f) a radio of theirs suyo
un radio ________
g) the desk of ours nuestro
el escritorio ________
h) cousins of yours tuyas
las primas ________
i) bicycles of theirs suyas
unas bicicletas ________
j) sisters of mine mías
las hermanas ________
More practice!
a) brothers of his unos hermanos ________
suyos
b) family of mine la familia ________
mía
c) windows of ours las ventanas ________
nuestras
d) a phone of yours un teléfono ________
tuyo
e) dogs of hers los perros ________
suyos
f) a house of theirs una casa ________
suya
g) a classroom of ours la sala de clase________
nuestra
h) bookbags of y’all’s las mochilas ________
suyas
i) parents of his los padres ________
suyos
j) favorite music of yours la música favorita ________
tuya