Possessive Adjectives
Possessive Adjectives
Portuguese possessives — my, your, our — agree with the thing being owned, the same way ordinary adjectives do, and often pair with the definite article too.
Grammar Comparison
Grammar Comparison
Possessives agree with the thing owned, not the owner
o meu livro, a minha casa
my book, my house
meu and minha both mean "my" — which one you use depends entirely on the gender of the noun that follows, not on who owns it: o meu livro (my book, masculine), a minha casa (my house, feminine). This is exactly how ordinary adjectives behave, since possessives follow the same agreement pattern.
The definite article often comes along for the ride
o meu carro (literally "the my car")
my car
Unlike English, which never pairs "my" with "the", European Portuguese commonly keeps the article right alongside the possessive: o meu carro, a tua casa. It can be dropped in some contexts (particularly before singular family terms, similar to a pattern you may have noticed elsewhere), but including it is always safe and is the more common, formal-sounding choice.
Vocabulary
Vocabulary
- English
- my (m sg)
- English
- my (f sg)
- English
- your (m sg)
- English
- your (f sg)
- English
- his/her/your (formal, m sg)
- English
- his/her/your (formal, f sg)
- English
- our (m sg)
- English
- our (f sg)
- English
- my (m pl)
- English
- my (f pl)