Possessive Pronouns Across Cases

Level 2

Possessive determiners indicate ownership. The stem (e.g., mein-) depends on the owner, while the ending (e.g., -e) depends on the noun being owned.

How It Works

In German, possessive determiners (Possessivartikel) must agree with the noun they precede in three ways: gender, case, and number.

1. Choosing the Stem (The Owner):

  • mein (my)
  • dein (your - informal)
  • sein (his/its)
  • ihr (her/their)
  • unser (our)
  • euer (your - plural informal)
  • Ihr (your - formal) — Note: The formal 'Ihr' is always capitalized to distinguish it from 'ihr' (her/their).

2. Adding the Ending (The Object):
They follow the 'ein-word' declension pattern. This means:

  • No ending: Masculine Nominative (mein Hund), Neuter Nominative (mein Kind), and Neuter Accusative (mein Kind).
  • Endings: In all other cases, they take endings similar to the definite articles.
  • Genitive Case: For the Genitive, use -es for Masculine/Neuter (meines Vaters) and -er for Feminine/Plural (meiner Mutter).

3. Special Spelling Rules:
The word euer is unique. When you add an ending that starts with a vowel, the internal 'e' is dropped: euer becomes eure, euren, or eurem. For unser, dropping the 'e' (unsre) is optional but less common in formal writing.

Examples (5)

  1. Ich suche meinen Schlüssel.

    I am looking for my key.

    Word by Word: I search my key.

    The noun 'Schlüssel' is masculine and the direct object (accusative). Therefore, 'mein' takes the '-en' ending.

  2. Wo ist dein Auto?

    Where is your car?

    Word by Word: Where is your car?

    The noun 'Auto' is neuter and the subject (nominative). In this 'bare' spot, the possessive has no ending.

  3. Wir helfen unserer Mutter.

    We are helping our mother.

    Word by Word: We help our mother.

    The verb 'helfen' requires the dative case. Since 'Mutter' is feminine, 'unser' takes the '-er' ending.

  4. Habt ihr eure Hausaufgaben?

    Do you (plural) have your homework?

    Word by Word: Have you your homework?

    Note how 'euer' loses its middle 'e' when the plural accusative ending '-e' is added.

  5. Das ist das Haus meines Vaters.

    That is my father's house.

    Word by Word: That is the house of-my father.

    This uses the genitive case to show possession. 'Mein' takes the '-es' ending for masculine genitive.

Common Mistakes

  • Over-declining in the nominative case.

    Das ist meiner Hund.
    Das ist mein Hund.

    Learners often try to add '-er' to masculine nominative because 'der' ends in 'r'. However, possessives follow the 'ein' pattern, which has no ending here.

  • Matching the ending to the owner instead of the noun.

    Die Frau liebt seine Mann.
    Die Frau liebt ihren Mann.

    The stem must match the owner (ihr- for 'her'), and the ending must match the object (Mann is masculine accusative, so -en).

  • Forgetting the spelling change for 'euer'.

    Ich sehe euere Kinder.
    Ich sehe eure Kinder.

    When 'euer' receives an ending, the 'e' before the 'r' must be dropped.

How It Connects

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Possessive Pronouns Across CasesLevel 2

Learn This First

To learn the full paradigm of possessive pronouns, you must understand how German cases (Nominative, Accusative, Dative, and Genitive) function and how they influence article endings. Since possessive pronouns function like the indefinite article 'ein', familiarity with its declension is a necessary foundation.

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Words in This Pattern

seinihrihrunsereuer