Possessive adjectives show who owns or is connected to something, and they must agree in gender and number with the noun they modify.
Key Terms
Here are the German possessive adjectives for each person, using mein as the model for the first person singular:
| German Word(s) | English Word(s) | |
|---|---|---|
| mein | my | |
| dein | your (informal) | |
| sein | his | |
| ihr | her | |
| sein | its | |
| unser | our | |
| euer | your (plural informal) | |
| ihr | their | |
| Ihr | your (formal) |
Agreement
Possessive adjectives take endings that match the gender, number, and case of the noun they modify; think of them as little determiners that must align with the noun.
Examples
Summary
Possessive adjectives tell you who something belongs to and must match the noun in gender, number, and case; learn the key forms for each person and practice with nouns you know.
Last updated: Fri Oct 24, 2025