sinn

His, Her or Their Own (Sinn)

Level 3

sinn means his/her/their own: Jón fór heim með konunni sinni (his own wife), but með konunni hans (another man's wife).

How It Works

Own or someone else's. English his can mean his own or another man's. Icelandic keeps these apart:

  • Jón fór heim með konunni sinni. (Jón went home with his own wife.)
  • Jón fór heim með konunni hans. (Jón went home with his wife, meaning another man's wife.)

It agrees with the thing owned. Like minn/þinn, sinn comes after the noun and takes its gender, number and case. The owner does not matter: a man and a woman both say bílinn sinn.

  • masculine: sinn, sinn, sínum, síns – Hann seldi bílinn sinn.
  • feminine: sín, sína, sinni, sinnar – Hún hringdi í mömmu sína.
  • neuter: sitt, sitt, sínu, síns – Hann seldi hjólið sitt.
  • plural: sínir, sínar, sín; dative sínum; genitive sinna – Krakkarnir tóku töskurnar sínar.

See minn in all cases for the same endings.

For every person in the third person. sinn covers he, she, it and they. For I, you, we use the normal possessives: Ég seldi bílinn minn.

Never inside the subject. sinn points back to a subject, so it cannot be part of that subject: Jón og konan hans búa í Kópavogi. Inside a new clause, it normally points to that clause's own subject. After eins og (like), use hans or hennar: Strákurinn er alveg eins og pabbi hans. In a subjunctive clause, sinn can also point back to the subject of the main clause (long-distance sig).

The pronoun sig works the same way (sig/sér/sín).

Examples (6)

  1. Jón fór heim með konunni sinni.

    Jón went home with his (own) wife.

    Word by Word: Jón went home with the-wife his-own.

  2. Jón fór heim með konunni hans.

    Jón went home with his wife (another man's wife).

    Word by Word: Jón went home with the-wife his.

    hans points to a different man, not to Jón.

  3. Anna hringdi í mömmu sína.

    Anna called her mother.

    Word by Word: Anna rang in mum her-own.

  4. Krakkarnir tóku töskurnar sínar.

    The kids took their bags.

    Word by Word: The-kids took the-bags their-own.

  5. Hann seldi hjólið sitt.

    He sold his bike.

    Word by Word: He sold the-bike his-own.

  6. Jón og konan hans búa í Kópavogi.

    Jón and his wife live in Kópavogur.

    Word by Word: Jón and the-wife his live in Kópavogur.

    konan hans is part of the subject, so it must be hans, not sín.

Common Mistakes

  • Using hennar or hans when you mean the subject's own.

    Anna hringdi í mömmu hennar.
    Anna hringdi í mömmu sína.

    With hennar the sentence means Anna called another woman's mother. For her own mother, use sína.

  • Making sinn agree with the owner.

    Anna seldi bílinn sín.
    Anna seldi bílinn sinn.

    sinn agrees with the thing owned. bíll is masculine, so it is sinn, even though Anna is a woman.

  • Using sinn inside the subject.

    Jón og konan sín búa í Kópavogi.
    Jón og konan hans búa í Kópavogi.

    sinn has to point back to a subject. Here the wife is part of the subject, so use hans.

How It Connects

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

sinnLevel 3His, Her or Their Own (Sinn)

Learn This First

sinn builds on sig and minn in all cases.

Words in This Pattern

sinnsinnsínsittsínasinnihanshennarþeirra