ihr/unser/euer

Possessive Pronouns Continued

Level 1

Possessive determiners tell us who owns something. ihr = her/their, unser = our, euer = your (plural/informal). They function like the word ein.

How It Works

These words are used before nouns to indicate possession. In German, they follow the rules of 'ein-words' (mixed declension).

1. The Stems:

  • ihr: Used when the owner (possessor) is feminine (e.g., die Frau und ihr Kind) or plural (e.g., die Eltern und ihr Kind). This applies to objects too, like die Firma und ihr Erfolg.
  • unser: Used for 'we' ('our').
  • euer: Used for 'you all' ('your' informal plural).
  • Ihr (Capitalized): Used for the formal 'your' (singular or plural).

2. The Endings:
Just like mein and dein, these words take endings based on the noun that follows. While you start with the Nominative case, remember that these words follow the full possessive paradigm and will change in the Accusative, Dative, and Genitive cases:

  • Masculine Nominative and Neuter Nominative/Accusative: No ending (unser Hund, ihr Buch).
  • Feminine/Plural Nominative: Add -e (unsere Katze, eure Kinder).

3. Special Spelling Rule (Syncope):
Whenever you add any ending to euer (like -e, -em, -en, or -er), the middle 'e' is dropped. It is almost always eure, eurem, etc., in modern German. For unser, dropping the 'e' (unsre) is common in speech but keeping it (unsere) is standard for writing.

Examples (5)

  1. Das ist unser Haus.

    That is our house.

    Word by Word: That is our house.

    'Haus' is neuter nominative, so 'unser' takes no ending.

  2. Wo ist eure Mutter?

    Where is your (plural) mother?

    Word by Word: Where is your mother?

    Note how 'euer' becomes 'eure' because 'Mutter' is feminine. The middle 'e' is dropped.

  3. Sie sucht ihren Hund.

    She is looking for her dog.

    Word by Word: She seeks her dog.

    'Hund' is masculine accusative here, so 'ihr' adds the '-en' ending.

  4. Unsere Kinder spielen im Garten.

    Our children are playing in the garden.

    Word by Word: Our children play in the garden.

    'Kinder' is plural, so 'unser' adds the '-e' ending.

  5. Ist das ihr Auto?

    Is that her car? (or: Is that their car?)

    Word by Word: Is that her/their car?

    Without context, 'ihr' can mean 'her' or 'their'. Context usually makes it clear.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 'euere' instead of 'eure'.

    Wo ist euere Tasche?
    Wo ist eure Tasche?

    While 'euere' is technically a variant, it is considered non-standard in modern German. You should always drop the middle 'e' when adding an ending.

  • Confusing 'ihr' (possessive) with 'ihr' (personal pronoun).

    Ihr Hund spielen. (You wanted to say 'You all play', but 'Ihr Hund' means 'her dog'.)
    Ihr spielt mit dem Hund.

    'Ihr' as a personal pronoun means 'you all' and is followed by a verb. 'Ihr' as a possessive means 'her' or 'their' and is followed by a noun.

  • Matching the gender to the owner instead of the object.

    Maria hat seinen Ball.
    Maria hat ihren Ball.

    Even if the ball is masculine, you must use 'ihr' because the owner (Maria) is female. The ending '-en' would then be added for the masculine accusative object.

How It Connects

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

ihr/unser/euerLevel 1Possessive Pronouns Continued

Learn This First

To understand 'unser', 'euer', and 'ihr', you first need to know the plural personal pronouns they relate to. Additionally, you should be familiar with the basic concept of possessive pronouns (introduced with 'mein/dein/sein') and how noun gender affects their endings.

Words in This Pattern

unsereuerihrihr