What are the possessive adjectives in English?

There are seven: my, your, his, her, its, our, and their. Each one goes before a noun to show who it belongs to, as in my name, your car, or their house.

When do I use his and when do I use her?

His and her depend on the owner, not on the thing owned. Use his when a male owns it and her when a female owns it, no matter what the object is. So a man's brother is his brother, and a woman's brother is her brother, as in Her brother is tall.

What is the difference between its and it's?

Its (no apostrophe) is the possessive adjective: The dog wagged its tail. It's (with an apostrophe) is short for it is or it has: It's raining. If you can replace the word with it is, use it's; otherwise use its.

Do possessive adjectives change for plural nouns?

No. Possessive adjectives stay the same whether the noun is singular or plural: my book and my books, our friend and our friends. Only the owner matters, never the number of things owned.

Pronouns

Possessive Adjectives in English: My, Your, His, Her, Its, Our, Their

Level A1 Pronouns

Key idea

Possessive adjectives sit in front of a noun to show who owns it: my, your, his, her, its, our, their. Unlike many languages, they never change to match the number of the thing owned, so it's my book and my books, our house and our houses. Just pick the word that matches the owner: My name is Sam, Her brother is tall, Their house is big. Watch two things: his and her match the owner, not the object, and its (possessive) is not the same as it's (it is).

Examples

My name is Sam. the speaker's name is Sam
Her brother is tall. the brother of a female person is tall
Their house is big. the house belonging to them is big

The full lesson

Everything in the video, in text.

my · your · his · her

showing who owns what

His brother, or her brother? Pick the wrong little word and you change who you're talking about.
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A possessive adjective goes before a noun to show who owns it.

These are possessive adjectives. They go in front of a noun to show who something belongs to — and they're some of the first words you'll ever need.
Owner → possessive
pronoun
I
you
he
she
it
we
they
possessive
my
your
his
her
its
our
their
There are seven of them, and each one matches a person. I goes with my, you with your, he with his, she with her, it with its, we with our, and they with their.
My name is Sam.
I → my

Let's see them in action. To talk about yourself, use my. My name is Sam.
Your bag is on the table.
you → your

Talking to the person in front of you? That's your. Your bag is on the table.
His car is new.
he → his

For a male owner — a man or a boy — use his. His car is new.
Her brother is tall.
she → her

For a female owner — a woman or a girl — use her. Her brother is tall.
The dog wagged its tail.
it → its (no apostrophe)

For a thing, an animal, or an idea, use its — with no apostrophe. We'll come back to that part. The dog wagged its tail.
Their house is big.
we → our · they → their

And for groups: our when it includes you, their when it's other people. Their house is big.
✗ Maria loves his sister. sounds like someone else's sister

✓ Maria loves her sister. Maria is female → her

His and her match the owner, not the object.

Now the classic mistake. His and her match the owner — not the thing owned. A woman's car is still her car, even though a car isn't female. Look at the owner, not the object.
✗ The cat licked it's paw. ‘it is paw’ — wrong

✓ The cat licked its paw. belonging to it → its

its = belonging to it · it's = it is.

And the trap everyone falls into: its versus it's. Its, with no apostrophe, means belonging to it. It's, with an apostrophe, is short for it is. For ownership, never use the apostrophe.
Possessive adjectives never change for one or many: my book / my books.

One more thing that makes English easy here: these words never change. Whether you own one book or ten, it's still my book and my books. The possessive stays the same.
Remember
- my · your · his · her · its · our · their
- his / her match the owner, not the object
- its = belonging to it (no apostrophe)
So remember: match the word to the owner, keep its apostrophe-free, and don't worry about plurals.

Examples

my · your · his · her

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