Possessives With the Article

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To say my room or our city, put the article on the possessive: моята стая, нашият град. The noun after it stays without an article.

How It Works

1. The forms. Each possessive adds the article that matches the noun after it (see the article on the first word):

  • мой → моят/моя град, моята стая, моето село, моите книги
  • твой → твоят/твоя, твоята, твоето, твоите
  • негов → неговият/неговия, неговата, неговото, неговите
  • неин → нейният/нейния, нейната, нейното, нейните
  • наш → нашият/нашия, нашата, нашето, нашите
  • ваш → вашият/вашия, вашата, вашето, вашите
  • техен → техният/техния, тяхната, тяхното, техните

2. Full and short article. With masculine nouns the full and short article rule applies to the possessive: Моят брат живее тук (subject) but Взе ли моя чадър? (object). Note that моя is also the plain feminine form: моя приятелка means a friend of mine (female).

3. With the article or without it.

  • Моят приятел дойде. (My friend came.) A specific, known person.
  • Той е мой приятел. (He is a friend of mine.) One of several.
  • Тази чанта е моя. (This bag is mine.) After съм, the possessive usually has no article.

4. Only one article. When an adjective follows, the article stays on the possessive: моите нови обувки (my new shoes), not моите новите обувки.

5. Short forms. In everyday speech the short possessive forms are often more natural: стаята ми = моята стая. The long form with the article adds a little emphasis or contrast: Това е моята стая, а не твоята. Family words like майка ми have their own pattern (see kinship terms).

Examples (6)

  1. Моята стая е малка, но светла.

    My room is small but bright.

    Моята: the feminine possessive with the article -та.

  2. Нашият град е много стар.

    Our city is very old.

    Нашият takes the full article because it is the subject.

  3. Моите родители живеят в Пловдив.

    My parents live in Plovdiv.

  4. Взе ли моя чадър?

    Did you take my umbrella?

    Моя has the short article because чадър is the object.

  5. Той е мой приятел от училище.

    He is a friend of mine from school.

    No article: he is one of my friends, not a specific known one.

  6. Вашето писмо пристигна вчера.

    Your letter arrived yesterday.

Common Mistakes

  • Leaving out the article before a specific noun.

    Моя стая е малка.
    Моята стая е малка.

    For a specific room you mean my room, so the possessive needs the article: моята.

  • Using the short article on a masculine subject.

    Моя брат живее в София.
    Моят брат живее в София.

    Моят брат is the subject, so the standard written form has the full article -ят. In speech the two often sound alike, but in writing the difference matters.

  • Putting the article on both words.

    Моята книгата е тук.
    Моята книга е тук.

    Only the first word of the phrase takes the article. Once моята has it, книга stays bare.

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Possessives With the ArticleLevel 2

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Possessives with the article apply the first-word rule to possessives.

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Words in This Pattern

мойнаш