HOW TO SAY ‘MY’, ‘YOUR’, ‘HIS’, ‘HER’, ‘THEIR’, AND ‘OUR’ IN ITALIAN:
In this post let’s have a look at Italian possessive adjectives but first you must understand the usage of “the”. I recommend you to take a look at that lesson.
In Italian, the possessive adjective you changes according to two things:
- Whether you’re talking about a single thing, or more than one thing (singular vs plural)
- Whether you’re talking about a masculine or feminine noun
Possessive adjectives:
MASCULINE (Singular)
my –mio
your- tuo
his/her/its-suo
our- nostro
your- vostro
their-loro
FEMININE (Singular)
my- mia
your-tua
his/her/its-sua
our-nostra
your-vostra
their- loro
MASCULINE (Plural)
my-miei
your-tuoi
his/her/its-suoi
our-nostri
your-vostri
their-loro
FEMININE (Plural)
my-mie
your-tue
his/her/its-sue
our-nostre
your-vostre
their-loro
There are many more possessive adjectives to master in Italian than English. Additionally, Italian possessive adjectives agree in gender (masculine/feminine) and in number (singular/plural) according to the noun they refer to.
For example, “horse” is a masculine noun, (regardless of the gender of the actual horse in question) so it uses the masculine mio and miei– il mio cavallo (My horse) i miei cavalli (My horses) Cars are always feminine. So when you’re talking about your car or cars, you use the feminine versions such as mia and mie. la mia macchina (My car) le mie macchine (My cars).
Also notice definite articles (words for “the) change too (il/i and la/le) and a possessive adjective (my, your, their) usually comes after the definite article (the).
his / her / its:
In Italian the use of his or her depends on the object in question and not on the person it is used for. In English it is, “his house”, in Italian it will be la sua casa. (regardless of the owner being masculine) It however, changes with quantity.
il suo gioco- his game / her game / its game
i suoi giochi- his games / her games / its games
la sua casa– his house / her house / its house
le sue case– his houses / her houses / its houses
Your (one person)
An example with masculine noun (table — tavolo) and a feminine noun (chair — sedia).
il tuo tavolo– your table
i tuoi tavoli– your tables
la tua sedia– your chair
le tue sedie– your chairs
Our:
An example of the masculine noun bathroom – bagno) and a feminine noun kitchen –cucina.
il nostro bagno– our bathroom
i nostri bagni-our bathrooms
la nostra cucina– our kitchen
le nostre cucine-our kitchens
Your (more than one person):
The usage of Your with masculine noun glass — bicchiere and a feminine noun bottle — bottiglia.
il vostro bicchiere-your glass
i vostri bicchieri-your glasses
la vostra bottiglia-your bottle
le vostre bottiglie-your bottles
Their:
The Italian word for “their” — “loro” doesn’t change according to gender or quantity like all the others do.
il loro divano– their sofa
i loro divani– their sofas
la loro televisione– their television
le loro televisioni– their televisions
To know if you’re talking about a masculine/feminine/singular/plural thing always pay attention to the article in front of it (“il“, “i“, “la“, “le“).
Useful phrases:
- La mia fidanzata mi ha regalato un prosciutto– My girlfriend gave me a ham.
- Il vostro cane è molto grasso. Your dog is very fat.
- Ho trovato una gallina nella tua macchina. I’ve found a hen in your car.
- Antonio ha parcheggiato la sua gondola in cortile. Antonio parked his gondola in the backyard.
- Il nostro panettone ha vinto il primo premio. Our panettone won the first prize.
- La loro casa è fatta di gelato. Their house is made of ice cream.