-ınız/-iniz/-unuz/-ünüz

Second-person Plural or Polite Possessive

Level 2

Use -ınız, -iniz, -unuz, -ünüz (or -nız, -niz, -nuz, -nüz after vowels) to say 'your' when addressing multiple people or one person formally.

How It Works

This suffix is attached to nouns to show possession by the pronoun siz (you all / You formal).

1. Vowel Harmony Rules:
The suffix follows the 4-way vowel harmony rule:

-ınız: After a, ı (e.g., adınız - your name)
-iniz: After e, ə, i (e.g., eviniz - your house)
-unuz: After o, u (e.g., dostunuz - your friend)
-ünüz: After ö, ü (e.g., gözünüz - your eye)

2. Vowel vs. Consonant Stems:
If the noun ends in a vowel, the first vowel of the suffix is dropped: ana + ınız → ananız. However, the words su (water) and nə (what) are exceptions; they use a buffer 'y' instead: suyunuz, nəyiniz.

3. Consonant Mutation:
In multi-syllable words ending in q or k, the consonants change to ğ or y: otaq → otağınız, çörək → çörəyiniz. Note that monosyllabic words (like tük or eşq) usually do not mutate.

4. Two-Syllable Vowel Drop:
Some two-syllable nouns referring to body parts or specific objects drop their second internal vowel when this suffix is added: burun (nose) → burnunuz, ağız (mouth) → ağzınız.

5. Usage and Emphasis:
The possessive pronoun sizin is often omitted because the suffix already identifies the owner. It is included only when you want to emphasize who the object belongs to. Always use this plural form for formal address to remain polite.

Examples (4)

Sizin adınız nədir?
What is your name? (Formal)
Word by Word: Your name-your what-is?
The suffix -ınız is added to 'ad' (name) because 'a' is a back, unrounded vowel.
Zəhmət olmasa, pasportlarınızı göstərin.
Please show your passports.
Word by Word: Trouble if-not-be, passports-your-definite show.
Here, the suffix is added to the plural 'pasportlar'. Note that the possessive suffix comes after the plural suffix.
Eviniz çox gözəldir.
Your house is very beautiful.
Word by Word: House-your very beautiful-is.
The suffix -iniz is used because 'ev' ends in a consonant and contains the vowel 'e'.
Sizin ailəniz necədir?
How is your family?
Word by Word: Your family-your how-is?
Since 'ailə' ends in a vowel, the suffix becomes -niz (dropping the initial 'i').

Common Mistakes

Forgetting consonant mutation for words ending in 'q' or 'k'.
Sizin otaqınız haradadır?
Sizin otağınız haradadır?
When a suffix starting with a vowel is added to a multi-syllable word ending in 'q', the 'q' must change to 'ğ'.
Confusing the possessive suffix with the 'to be' (predicative) suffix.
Siz müəlliminiz.
Siz müəllimsiniz.
-iniz means 'your', while -siniz means 'you are'. 'Müəlliminiz' means 'your teacher', but 'Müəllimsiniz' means 'You are a teacher'.
Applying consonant mutation to monosyllabic words.
Sizin tüyünüz.
Sizin tükünüz.
Unlike multi-syllable words, short one-syllable words ending in 'k' or 'q' usually do not change their final consonant when adding this suffix.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

-ınız/-iniz/-unuz/-ünüzLevel 2Second-person Plural or Polite Possessive

Learn This First

To learn the second-person plural possessive suffix, you need to understand Azerbaijani's four-way vowel harmony to choose the correct suffix variant. You should also be familiar with the pronoun 'siz' (you plural/polite) and the basic concept of possessive suffixes as seen in the singular form.