din/ditt/dina
Your/yours (Singular)
'Din', 'ditt', and 'dina' all mean 'your' (singular). Use 'din' for en-words, 'ditt' for ett-words, and 'dina' for plural nouns.
How It Works
When you want to say that something belongs to 'you' (one person), you use din, ditt, or dina. The correct form depends on the noun that follows.
This is a fundamental concept in Swedish that relies on understanding noun genders.
Here are the rules:
- Use din for en-words (common gender, singular).
Example: en bok (a book) → din bok (your book) - Use ditt for ett-words (neuter gender, singular).
Example: ett hus (a house) → ditt hus (your house) - Use dina for all plural nouns, regardless of gender.
Example: böcker (books) → dina böcker (your books)
Example: hus (houses) → dina hus (your houses)
These words can also stand alone, meaning 'yours'.
Example: Vems bok är det? Det är din. (Whose book is it? It is yours.)
After an attributive possessive, the noun has indefinite form: din bok, not din boken. An adjective in between normally has definite -a form: din nya bok. Standing alone, the possessive still agrees with its understood noun: Böckerna är dina.
Examples (5)
- Är det här din cykel?
Is this your bike?
Word by Word: Is this here your bike?
- Jag har ditt paraply.
I have your umbrella.
Word by Word: I have your umbrella.
- Dina vänner är trevliga.
Your friends are nice.
Word by Word: Your friends are nice.
- Är den här jackan din?
Is this jacket yours?
Din is predicative after är and means yours. It still agrees with the subject’s en-word jacka; it is not an adjective placed after jackan inside the noun phrase.
- Barnet är inte ditt.
The child is not yours.
'Ditt' is used because 'barnet' is an ett-word.
Common Mistakes
Using the wrong form for the noun's gender.
Jag ser ditt katt.Jag ser din katt.The word 'katt' is an en-word ('en katt'), so you must use 'din'. 'Ditt' is only for ett-words.
How It Connects
Learn This First
To use these possessive pronouns, you must be able to identify a noun's gender and number, as the pronoun must agree with the noun it describes.
Related Patterns
- min/mitt/minaMy/mine
Follows the exact same agreement pattern as 'din/ditt/dina' but means 'my/mine'.
Level 1 - Noun genders
You must know if a noun is 'en' or 'ett' to choose correctly between 'din' and 'ditt'. This is the foundation for using possessive pronouns correctly.
Foundations - hans/hennesHis/hers
Hans means his and hennes means her/hers. These forms do not change to match noun gender or number, unlike din/ditt/dina.
Level 1 - sin/sitt/sinaHis/her/its/their (Reflexive)
In a simple third-person clause, sin/sitt/sina can refer back to the subject. With du as subject, use din/ditt/dina for that person’s own belongings too: Du tar din bok.
Level 1
Words in This Pattern
Practice din/ditt/dina in Bubblegum
Poppy, your AI tutor, writes Swedish lessons at your level. Tap any grammar point in a lesson to see its full explanation.
