How to Use Spanish Possessive Adjectives? (Chart & Examples) (2024)

An adjective is a word that describes a noun. A possessive adjective is more specific than that – it describes who or what possesses something. For example, in the sentence “Her dog is very friendly,” the possessive adjective is “her.”

Possessive adjectives help you to use pronouns to show ownership or possession without sounding repetitive.

This post guides you through the ins and outs of using possessive adjectives correctly. The examples and exercises give you the tools you need to use this part of speech properly as you work toward fluency in Spanish.

What are possessive adjectives in Spanish?

Possessive adjectives identify to whom a noun belongs, so they are always found with a noun. As you write and speak, you can use possessive adjectives to show ownership or possession instead of referring back to the same person or thing over and over again.

There are two types of possessive adjectives, and they both have different uses.

• Short-form adjectives are always placed before the noun and are meant for clarification, not to add emphasis.
• Long-form adjectives are placed after the noun and can be used to contrast one possessor with another, highlighting the one who actually possesses the noun.

When determining the correct possessive adjective to use, you must consider the noun it describes. In Spanish, all nouns have gender and number. So possessive adjectives must agree with the gender and number of the noun they modify.

For example:

• Number: mi carro (my car, singular); mis carros (my cars, plural)
• Gender: nuestro carro (our car, masculine), nuestra maleta (our suitcase, feminine)

Spanish possessive adjectives chart

Like all adjectives in Spanish, possessive adjectives must match the noun in gender and number. So you have to consider whether the noun is masculine or feminine and whether it’s singular or plural.

Remember that possessive adjectives describe the person or thing being possessed or owned, not the owner.

How to choose the right possessive adjective

As a Spanish language learner, you must consider three things to correctly choose a possessive adjective for a sentence: the noun being described, the gender of that noun (masculine/feminine), and the number of that noun (singular/plural).

For example: las llaves de Samuel (Sam’s keys/the keys of Sam)

To choose the right possessive adjective instead of repeating, Samuel, while you’re talking, consider these factors:

• Noun described: The noun is llaves.
• Gender: The word llaves is feminine.
• Number: In this sentence, llaves is used in its plural form.

This means that the correct possessive adjective is sus, and now you can create a sentence, such as: Esas son sus llaves. (Those are his keys.)

Possessive adjectives vs. possessive pronouns

Possessive adjectives and possessive pronouns both indicate possession or ownership, and this can trip up both beginners and advanced learners. The difference is that possessive adjectives are always accompanied by a noun while possessive personal pronouns take the place of the noun and are used most often with a definite article (el, la, los, las).

For example:

• Possessive adjective: mis estudiantes (my students)
• Possessive pronoun: Los estudiantes son míos. (The students are mine.)

Short-form Spanish possessive adjectives (unstressed)

Spanish has a set of short-form and long-form possessive adjectives. Short-form possessive adjectives (unstressed) do not add emphasis and are always placed before the noun.

For example:

• ¿Has visto mi bolsa? (Have you seen my bag?)
• Me gusta tu mochila. (I like your backpack. )
• ¿Tiene su equipaje de mano? (Does he have his carry-on luggage?)
• ¿Vienes a nuestra casa? (Are you coming to our house?)
• Vamos a vuestro restaurante. (Let’s go to your restaurant.)
• ¿Has comprado sus marcadores? (Have you bought their markers?)
• ¿Dónde están sus apuntes de historia? (Where are your [formal] history notes?)

Long-form Spanish possessive adjectives (stressed)

Spanish has a set of long-form (stressed) adjectives. These are used for emphasis and can be used to contrast one possessor with another. These all follow the noun they describe.

For example:

• Short-form: Esa es mi revista. That is my magazine.
• Long-form: La revista es mía. The magazine is mine.

Short-form possessive adjectives can be used to make others aware of whom has ownership of a certain item. Many times, it is used to answer a question when someone is asking about ownership. Long-form possessive adjectives are used in many cases when ownership is mistaken, and it needs to be emphasized to whom something belongs.

As with short-form possessive adjectives, long-form possessive adjectives must also agree with the noun in gender and number. However, these will be placed after the noun.

he noun in gender and number. However, these will be placed after the noun.

For example:

• Un perro mío. A dog of mine, one of my dogs
• Una pulsera tuya. A bracelet of yours, one of your bracelets
• Una bicicleta suya. A bicycle of his/hers/theirs/your, one of his/her/their/your bicycles
• Un gato nuestro. A cat of ours, one of our cats
• Un amigo vuestro. A friend of yours, one of your friends
• Un pastel suyo. A cake of theirs (formal), one of their (formal) cakes

4 tips for using Spanish possessive adjectives

Now that you have a good grasp of possessive adjectives in both of their forms, check out these four tips for properly using Spanish possessive adjectives.

Know when to omit a possessive adjective

When talking about body parts in Spanish, don’t use possessive adjectives to say that a body part is owned by a person. In these instances, use definite articles (el, la, los, las) combined with a reflexive pronoun to show ownership.

• For example: Me lavo el cabello. (I wash my hair.)

In a sentence that contains multiple nouns belonging to the same owner, or in sentences where it is obvious who the owner is, there is no need to use a possessive adjective.

Don’t use possessive adjectives when describing feelings

Instead of using possessive adjectives when talking about someone’s feelings and emotions, use definite articles. Intangible items – items that cannot be physically held – would follow this pattern.

• For example: Te mando esta carta con todo el amor que tengo. (I send you this letter with all of the love that I have.)

Avoid confusion when using su and sus

The possessive adjective su/sus can mean his, her, its, your, or their. This may cause confusion. To clarify to whom it is referring, use a phrase containing de plus the pronoun/person instead of su/sus.

For example:

• Sus libros could be referring to his/her/its/their books.
• This can be clarified by saying los libros de los alumnos.

Using de to show possession is similar to the phrase “the books of the students” in English as there are no apostrophes in Spanish.

Don’t confuse tu with tú

Though at first glance tu and tú look and sound similar, they are in fact two different words with different uses. To sound more like a native speaker, remember these differences:

• The pronoun tú with the acute accent is the informal subject pronoun for “you” in Spanish. Though at times the writer may be writing quickly and forget the accent, the pronoun tú will only be used to replace the subject of a sentence.
• The pronoun tu written without an accent, is the informal possessive adjective for “your,” and you use it to show possession for someone who may be addressed as tú.

Practice exercise and worksheet

Now put your learning into practice. Take a look at the below sentences and fill in the blanks with the correct possessive adjective based on the pronoun for whom it belongs.

Remember that possessive adjectives must agree in gender and number and they describe the person or thing being possessed or owned, not the owner. Answers are provided below each sentence.

1. (yo) Este es ________ libro.

Este es mi libro. (This is my book.)

2. (tú) ¿Dónde está _______ chamarra?

¿Donde está tu chamarra? (Where is your coat?)

3. (Samuel) No tiene ________ pasaporte.

Samuel no tiene su pasaporte. (Samuel doesn’t have his passport.)

4. (Margarita) Margarita perdió____ perro.

Margarita perdió su perro. (Margarita lost her dog.)

5. (usted) ¿Es _____ carro?

¿Es su carro? (Is it your car?)

6. (nosotros) _____ comida es deliciosa.

Nuestra comida es deliciosa. (Our food is delicious.)

7. (vosotros) Quiero apoyar _____ causa.

Quiero apoyar vuestra causa. (I want to support your cause.)

8. (ellos) Fuimos a _____ eventos.

Fuimos a sus eventos. (We went to their events.)

9. (ustedes) Trajeron _____computadoras.

Trajeron sus computadoras. (You all brought your computers.)

10. (Sr. Martinez) El Sr. Martinez busca ____ salon de clase.

El Sr. Martinez busca su salon de clase. (Mr. Martinez looks for his classroom.)

Improve your Spanish grammar with a Preply tutor

Which possessive adjective you choose can completely change the meaning of a sentence, so using this grammar correctly is vital for communicating without misunderstandings. Knowing when to omit a possessive adjective is also key to progressing to an advanced level of Spanish and speaking fluently.

Although studying Spanish grammar by yourself helps build your knowledge, to truly become confident speaking the language, you need regular practice, ideally talking with native speakers. One way to do this is with a tutor.

A Preply tutor can help you practice the subtleties of Spanish possessive adjectives and provide personalized feedback in real time. They’ll create individualized lesson plans according to your needs, guide you through cultural nuances, and work with you to improve your fluency goals.

Take online Spanish classes with a tutor today to get one step closer to mastering Spanish and speaking confidently in real-world situations.