How to conjugate possessive adjectives in spanish.

In Spanish, possessive adjectives are used to show ownership or relationship. They agree in number (and sometimes gender) with the noun being possessed, not with the owner.

1️⃣ Types of Possessive Adjectives

There are two types:

• Short-form (before the noun) → most common

• Long-form (after the noun) → used for emphasis or contrast

2️⃣ Short-Form Possessive Adjectives (Before the Noun)

These do NOT change for gender, only for singular vs. plural.

Owner	Singular	Plural
my	mi	mis
your (tú)	tu	tus
his / her / your (usted)	su	sus
our	nuestro / nuestra	nuestros / nuestras
your (vosotros)	vuestro / vuestra	vuestros / vuestras
their / your (ustedes)	su	sus

✅ Examples

• mi libro (my book)

• mis libros (my books)

• tu casa (your house)

• sus amigos (his/her/their friends)

• nuestra escuela (our school)

• nuestros maestros (our teachers)

📌 Key rule:

The possessive adjective agrees with the noun owned, not the person who owns it.

3️⃣ Long-Form Possessive Adjectives (After the Noun)

These agree in BOTH gender and number and are often used for clarity or emphasis.

Owner	Masculine Singular	Feminine Singular	Masculine Plural	Feminine Plural
mine	mío	mía	míos	mías
yours (tú)	tuyo	tuya	tuyos	tuyas
his/hers	suyo	suya	suyos	suyas
ours	nuestro/a*	nuestros/as*
yours (vosotros)	vuestro/a*	vuestros/as*
theirs	suyo	suya	suyos	suyas

(The forms for nuestro and vuestro are usually taught in short-form, but also exist in long-form.)

✅ Examples

• El libro es mío. (The book is mine.)

• La mochila es tuya. (The backpack is yours.)

• Los cuadernos son suyos. (The notebooks are his/hers/theirs.)

• Las ideas son nuestras. (The ideas are ours.)

4️⃣ Avoiding Confusion with su / sus

Since su / sus can mean his, her, its, your, or their, Spanish often clarifies:

✅ de + person

• El libro de ella (her book)

• Los zapatos de ellos (their shoes)

5️⃣ Common Mistakes to Avoid

❌ su casa de ella ✅ la casa de ella

❌ mi casas ✅ mis casas

❌ Matching the owner instead of the noun ✅ su hermano, su hermana

6️⃣ Quick Practice

Choose the correct form:

1. ___ amigos (my) → mis amigos

2. ___ mochila (our) → nuestra mochila

3. El coche es ___ (yours) → tuyo