мой/твой

Possessive Pronouns

Level 1Sounds Like pritežatelni mestoimeniâ moj/tvoj

мой (my), твой (your), негов (his), неин (her), наш (our), ваш (your), техен (their). The ending matches the thing: моята книга, моето куче.

How It Works

All the forms. Each line goes masculine, feminine, neuter, plural, matching the thing owned.

  • my: мой, моя, мое, мои
  • your (one person): твой, твоя, твое, твои
  • his, or its for a masculine or neuter owner: негов, негова, негово, негови
  • her, or its for a feminine owner: неин, нейна, нейно, нейни
  • our: наш, наша, наше, наши
  • your (more than one person, or polite): ваш, ваша, ваше, ваши
  • their: техен, тяхна, тяхно, техни

Match the thing, not the owner. The owner decides between негов and неин; the thing owned decides the ending. Това е неговата чанта. (This is his bag.) Това е нейният телефон. (This is her phone.)

With the article. Before a noun for a specific thing, add the article to the possessive: моят телефон, моята кола, моето куче, моите приятели. Masculine has a full form моят for the subject or a definite complement after съм, and a short form моя for an object or after a preposition. Without the article, a possessive before a noun means one of several: Мой приятел живее в Лондон. (A friend of mine lives in London.) See possessives with the article.

Without the article. After съм, the possessive stands alone: Този телефон е мой. (This phone is mine.) Тази книга е моя. (This book is mine.)

Pronunciation. Say мое, твое, наше and ваше with a clear е at the end. Forms like мойо or нашо are not standard.

Short forms. In everyday speech people often use a short form after the noun instead: колата ми (my car). With family words this is the normal way: майка ми (my mother). See short possessive forms and kinship terms.

Polite. With polite Вие, use Ваш with a capital letter: Това ли е Вашият паспорт? (Is this your passport?)

Examples (6)

  1. Тази книга е моя.

    This book is mine.

    Word by Word: This book is mine.

    Книга is feminine, so the form is моя. After е there is no article.

  2. Това е неговата кола.

    This is his car.

    Word by Word: This is his-the car.

    Негов for a male owner; -ата because кола is feminine.

  3. Моят телефон е нов.

    My phone is new.

    Word by Word: My-the phone is new.

    A masculine subject takes the full article: моят.

  4. Нейното куче е много малко.

    Her dog is very small.

    Word by Word: Her-the dog is very small.

    Неин for a female owner; нейното because куче is neuter.

  5. Техните деца са на училище.

    Their children are at school.

    Word by Word: Their-the children are at school.

    Деца is plural, so техен becomes техните.

  6. Това ли е Вашият паспорт?

    Is this your passport?

    Word by Word: This question-particle is your-the passport?

    Polite Ваш, written with a capital letter.

Common Mistakes

  • Choosing the ending by the owner instead of the thing.

    Този телефон е нейна.
    Този телефон е неин.

    Телефон is masculine, so the form is неин, even though the owner is a woman.

  • Leaving out the article before a noun for a specific thing (intended: My phone is new).

    Мой телефон е нов.
    Моят телефон е нов.

    When a possessive comes before a noun for a specific thing, the possessive takes the article.

  • Using е in the feminine of техен.

    Това е техната къща.
    Това е тяхната къща.

    Техен changes е to я in the feminine and neuter: тяхна, тяхно. The plural is техни.

How It Connects

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

мой/твойLevel 1Possessive Pronouns

Learn This First

Possessive pronouns need adjective agreement.

Words in This Pattern

мойтвой