säin / seng
His and Its: Säin and Seng
Säin or säi and seng mean his or its: säi Vëlo, seng Mamm, seng Kanner.
How It Works
In English, "his" and "her" depend only on the owner. In Luxembourgish, you look at two things.
1. Who owns it? Use säin and seng when the owner is:
- a man, a boy or any other masculine noun: De Paul sicht säi Schlëssel.
- a neuter noun, such as d'Kand or d'Meedchen: D'Meedchen sicht säin Handy.
- a woman or girl you call hatt, usually because you use her first name: D'Anna huet säi Buch net.
When the owner is someone or something you call si, such as d'Léierin (the teacher) or d'Fra (the woman), or when the owners are a group, use hiren, hir and hiert instead.
2. What is owned? Säin goes with masculine and neuter nouns, and seng with feminine and plural nouns, just like mäin and meng:
- säi Vëlo, säin Auto (masculine)
- säi Kand, säin Haus (neuter)
- seng Mamm (feminine)
- seng Kanner (plural)
Säin follows the n-rule: säin Auto and säin Haus, but säi Vëlo.
You will often hear the owner named first, in the dative: dem Papp säin Auto (Dad's car). See dem Papp säin Auto.
Examples (6)
- De Paul sicht säi Schlëssel.
Paul is looking for his key.
Schlëssel is masculine and starts with sch, so säin becomes säi.
- Säin Auto ass nei.
His car is new.
- De Paul besicht seng Mamm.
Paul is visiting his mum.
Mamm is feminine, so the form is seng.
- Seng Kanner wunnen zu Esch.
His children live in Esch.
- D'Anna huet säi Buch net.
Anna doesn't have her book.
D'Anna is called hatt, so her things take säin and seng.
- D'Meedchen sicht säin Handy.
The girl is looking for her phone.
Meedchen is a neuter noun, so it takes säin.
Common Mistakes
Choosing säin because the owner is a man, even before a feminine noun.
De Paul besicht säi Mamm.De Paul besicht seng Mamm.The owner only decides between säin/seng and hiren/hir. The noun Mamm is feminine, so the form is seng.
Using säin for an owner you call si.
D'Léierin sicht säi Schlëssel.D'Léierin sicht hire Schlëssel.Léierin is a feminine noun, and you call her si. Her things take hiren, hir or hiert. Hiren becomes hire before S.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Before His and Its: Säin and Seng, learn My: Mäin and Meng.
Related Patterns
- hattHatt: She for Women and Girls by Name
A woman or girl called hatt takes säin and seng for her things.
Level 1 - hiren / hir / hiertHer and Their: Hiren, Hir and Hiert
Her and their, for an owner you call si.
Level 2 - dem Papp säin AutoWhose Is It? Dem Papp Säin Auto
Säin often follows the owner in the dative to show possession.
Level 2 - de Paul / d'AnnaArticles with Names
Why a woman's first name takes d' and hatt, and so säin.
Level 1 - The N-Rule (Eifeler Regel)
Säin becomes säi before most consonants.
Level 1
Words in This Pattern
Practice säin / seng in Bubblegum
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