French possessive adjectives and pronouns

Video lesson

Possessive adjectives and pronouns express ownership: who something or someone belongs to. This page brings together the complete tables, the agreement rule, the most common mistakes, a self-check and a recap so you can master them. French forms and examples are kept in French; the explanations are in English.

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In this lesson

The rule in one sentence
Possessive adjectives
Possessive pronouns
The classic trap
Common mistakes
Self-check
FAQ
Key takeaways

The rule in one sentence

A possessive adjective goes with a noun (mon livre); a possessive pronoun replaces it (le mien). In both cases the agreement is with the thing possessed, never with the owner.

Possessive adjectives (les adjectifs possessifs)

A possessive adjective comes before a noun and agrees in gender and number with the thing possessed, not with the owner. It also changes with the person of the owner.

Owner	Masculine singular	Feminine singular	Plural (m./f.)
je (I)	mon	ma	mes
tu (you, informal)	ton	ta	tes
il / elle / on	son	sa	ses
nous (we)	notre	notre	nos
vous (you, formal/plural)	votre	votre	vos
ils / elles (they)	leur	leur	leurs

Examples: mon livre, ma voiture, mes amis · notre maison, nos projets · leur voiture, leurs enfants.

Key point: son / sa / ses agrees with the object possessed, not with the owner's gender. « Sa voiture » can mean his car or her car, the feminine noun "voiture" forces "sa," regardless of who owns it.

Exception: feminine noun starting with a vowel or silent h

Replace ma, ta, sa with mon, ton, son to avoid two clashing vowels: mon amie, son école, ton habitude (not « ma amie »).

Possessive pronouns (les pronoms possessifs)

A possessive pronoun replaces a noun that already has a possessive adjective, to avoid repetition. It always takes the definite article (le, la, les).

Owner	Masc. sing.	Fem. sing.	Masc. plural	Fem. plural
je	le mien	la mienne	les miens	les miennes
tu	le tien	la tienne	les tiens	les tiennes
il / elle / on	le sien	la sienne	les siens	les siennes
nous	le nôtre	la nôtre	les nôtres	les nôtres
vous	le vôtre	la vôtre	les vôtres	les vôtres
ils / elles	le leur	la leur	les leurs	les leurs

Examples: « C'est mon livre. » → « C'est le mien. » (It's mine.) · « Son frère est médecin ; le mien est avocat. » → « Le sien est médecin ; le mien est avocat. »

Mind the circumflex: the pronouns le nôtre / le vôtre take a circumflex accent (closed "o" [o]), unlike the adjectives notre / votre (open "o" [ɔ]). Adjective: « C'est notre voiture. » Pronoun: « Cette voiture est la nôtre. »
Contraction with à and de: au mien, aux miens, du mien, des tiennes. E.g. « Je préfère mon bureau au tien. »

The classic trap

« Son » or « sa » tells you nothing about the owner. In English, his and her change with the owner; in French they do not. « Sa moto » is used whether the owner is a man or a woman, because « moto » is feminine. Likewise « son livre » stays « son » in both cases. Remember: look at the noun that follows, not the person.

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Common mistakes

« ma amie » instead of « mon amie ». Before a vowel-initial feminine noun, use mon / ton / son.
Choosing son/sa by the owner's sex. The agreement is with the object: « sa moto » even if the owner is a man.
Confusing notre and nôtre. No accent = adjective (notre maison); with accent = pronoun (la nôtre).
Confusing leur and leurs. leur + singular noun (leur voiture), leurs + plural noun (leurs enfants); the object pronoun « leur » (je leur parle) never changes.
Making mes / tes / ses feminine. One plural form only, for both masculine and feminine (mes frères, mes sœurs).

Self-check

Choose the right form, then reveal the answers.

C'est ____ (mon / ma) amie Sophie.
Cette maison est ____ (la notre / la nôtre).
Les enfants rangent ____ (leur / leurs) jouets.

Show answers

1. mon amie (vowel-initial feminine) · 2. la nôtre (pronoun, circumflex) · 3. leurs jouets (plural noun).

FAQ

What's the difference between a possessive adjective and a possessive pronoun?

The adjective goes with a noun (mon livre). The pronoun replaces the noun and uses an article (le mien).

Why "mon amie" and not "ma amie"?

Before a feminine noun starting with a vowel or silent h, ma/ta/sa become mon/ton/son.

Does "sa voiture" mean his car or her car?

Both. French son/sa/ses agrees with the object, never with the owner's gender; context tells you who.

Notre or nôtre?

Notre (no accent) is the adjective (notre maison); nôtre (circumflex) is the pronoun (la nôtre). Same for votre/vôtre.

Leur or leurs?

leur + singular noun, leurs + plural noun. The object pronoun "leur" (je leur parle) is invariable.

Key takeaways

Agreement is always with the thing possessed, never with the owner.
Adjective = before a noun (mon, ma, mes…); pronoun = with an article (le mien, la nôtre…).
Before a vowel-initial feminine noun: mon / ton / son (mon amie).
notre / votre = adjectives; nôtre / vôtre (accent) = pronouns.
leur + singular, leurs + plural; the pronoun « leur » is invariable.

Practice exercises

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Written and reviewed by the native French teachers at Live French, online since 2007.