Practice
Possessive determiners: forms and examples
You want to talk about a colleague's schedule, a friend's phone, or a company's plan. English often puts one short word before the noun: her schedule, his phone, its plan. Those words are possessive determiners.
Choose the possessive determiner that shows who owns or is connected to a noun.
Read and practice
Read the examples and try the written questions in this guide. Listening recordings are not available for this lesson yet.
Try the written questions
possessive determiner /pəˈzɛsɪv dɪˈtɜrmɪnər/
The short answer
Use my, your, his, her, its, our, or their before a noun to show a connection or possession. Choose the form that matches the owner: her report means the report belongs to or is associated with one female person.
Our team starts its meeting at nine.
Why it works: Our identifies the team that includes the speaker. Its refers to the team, which is treated as one thing in this sentence.
5 more examples
-
My neighbor left her bicycle by the gate.
Her tells us that the bicycle is connected to the neighbor, a female person. Bicycle is the noun that follows the determiner.
Not this:My neighbor left
her bicyclesby the gate. What changes: Her does not change when the noun is plural. It still identifies the same owner. -
Your appointment is on Thursday morning.
Your connects the appointment to the listener. Appointment is singular, but your could also come before a plural noun.
Not this:
Your appointmentsare on Thursday morning and Friday morning. What changes: Your stays the same even though appointments is plural. -
The museum changed its opening hours this month.
Its refers to the museum, a thing or organization treated as one thing here. Its has no apostrophe.
Not this:The museum says
it'sopen until six. What changes: It's means it is in this sentence. It is not a possessive determiner. -
Their customers received an email yesterday.
Their connects the customers to a group of people or an organization mentioned in the conversation.
Not this:The customers received
their emailsyesterday. What changes: Their now refers to the customers. Check who owns or receives the thing before you choose the form. -
His sister brought our lunch to the table.
Our includes the speaker and at least one other person. Lunch is an uncountable noun, but it can still follow a possessive determiner.
Not this:His sister brought
our lunchesto the table. What changes: Our stays the same with a plural noun when the meaning is several separate meals.
Read the full guide
First identify the owner or connected person, group, animal, or thing. Then choose the possessive determiner that matches that owner. Put the determiner before the noun. In my notebook, my comes before notebook. English does not normally say the my notebook.
Match the word to the owner
Choose the possessive determiner by asking who owns, uses, has, or is connected to the noun. Use my for the speaker, your for the listener, his or her for one person, its for a thing or animal, our for a group that includes the speaker, and their for another group.
Her manager called before lunch.
Her refers to one female person. Manager is the noun that follows it.
Choose the word for a document that belongs to you.
Use my document when you are the owner.
Put it before a noun
A possessive determiner needs a noun after it. Say your answer, their project, or our train. Do not add the before a possessive determiner. English uses one determiner in this position.
We checked our tickets at the entrance.
Our comes directly before tickets. The phrase does not need the.
Which phrase is standard: the my keys or my keys?
Use my keys. My already identifies the connection to the speaker.
Use the same form with singular and plural nouns
The possessive determiner identifies the owner, so it usually does not change with the number of the following noun. You can say her address and her addresses, or their plan and their plans. The noun and verb show singular or plural meaning.
Their child likes their new books.
Their appears before both child and books. It refers to the same owners in both phrases.
Complete the phrase for several ideas from one male person: ___ ideas.
Use his ideas. His does not change because ideas is plural.
Keep its and it's separate
Use its before a noun to show a connection: its color, its owner, its schedule. Use it's only when you can replace it with it is or it has. This spelling difference changes the grammar of the sentence.
The printer needs its new ink cartridge.
Its identifies the cartridge connected to the printer. It has no apostrophe.
Choose the correct form: The printer says ___ ready.
Use it's because the sentence means it is ready.
Compare determiners and pronouns
Possessive pronouns can replace a possessive determiner plus its noun. Mine, yours, his, hers, ours, and theirs do not need another noun after them. This helps you avoid repeating a noun that is already clear.
That blue coat is hers.
Hers stands alone. In her blue coat, her is a determiner because coat follows it.
Complete the sentence without repeating the noun: This folder is ___.
Use mine, yours, his, hers, ours, or theirs, depending on the owner.
Before you go
Remember this
Find the owner first, then put the matching possessive determiner before the noun: my, your, his, her, its, our, or their. The determiner does not change because the noun is singular or plural. Use a possessive pronoun such as mine or theirs when there is no noun after it.
Practice with the written examples
You can practice with the written questions in the Learn tab. Each answer includes an explanation.
Try the written questionsListening test not available yet
This lesson does not have the recordings needed for a listening test. Use the written questions in the guide to check your understanding.
Try the written questionsQuestions about "Possessive determiners: forms and examples"
What are the possessive determiners in English?
The common possessive determiners are my, your, his, her, its, our, and their. They come before a noun and show who or what the noun is connected to. For example, my phone refers to the speaker's phone, while their phone refers to a phone connected to another group of people.
My neighbor left her bicycle by the gate.
Does a possessive determiner change with a plural noun?
Usually, no. The determiner matches the owner, not the number of the noun after it. You can say her report or her reports, and their office or their offices. Check the noun and the verb to understand whether the sentence refers to one thing or more than one thing.
My neighbor left her bicycles by the gate.
What is the difference between its and it's?
Its is a possessive determiner before a noun, as in the company changed its address. It's is a short form of it is or it has, as in it's closed or it's been repaired. Try replacing it's with it is or it has. If that works, use the apostrophe.
Your appointment is on Thursday morning.
How are possessive determiners different from possessive pronouns?
A possessive determiner needs a noun after it: my bag, her answer, or their car. A possessive pronoun can stand alone: the bag is mine, the answer is hers, or the car is theirs. Both forms show a connection or possession, but they have different positions in a sentence.
Your appointments are on Thursday morning and Friday morning.
Can I use a or the with a possessive determiner?
Do not normally use a, an, or the directly before the same noun when you use a possessive determiner. Say my jacket or the jacket, not the my jacket. The possessive determiner already identifies the noun's connection to an owner, so English does not add another determiner in that position.
The museum changed its opening hours this month.