I can name my relatives, say “my brother”, “my mom”, “my parents”, and say who's standing where in a photo.
My family: mio, mia, i miei, le mie
My family: mio, mia, i miei, le mie
To name your relatives and say who is in a photo, you need family words and four forms of “my”: mio, mia, i miei, le mie.
Almost every family word comes in a pair by gender: il padre — la madre, il fratello — la sorella, il nonno — la nonna (see the table). Father and mother together are i genitori.
Unlike English “my”, Italian “my” agrees with the family word, never with the speaker. Learn the four forms as set phrases: mio before a masculine word (mio fratello), mia before a feminine one (mia madre), i miei before a masculine plural (i miei genitori), le mie before a feminine plural (le mie sorelle). With a singular family word, no article. Other uses of “my” come at the next level.
Introducing someone: Questo è mio zio, Questa è mia zia — questo or questa follows the gender of the family word, not the speaker. To ask about someone else's family, use the set phrase Quanti anni ha tua madre? — for now, just remember tua.
In a photo: Nella foto ci sono mio padre e mia madre. Who is where: a destra, a sinistra, al centro.
Italians often gesture as they talk: it's normal, not a sign of emotion, and you see it in photos too.
Common mistakes:
• NOT “il mio padre” → mio padre (no article in these set phrases).
• NOT “mio madre” → mia madre.
• NOT “mia genitori” → i miei genitori (plural).
• NOT “Questo è mia sorella” → Questa è mia sorella.
Four forms of “my”
Learn the set phrases whole, without a rule — the rule comes later.
| Form | Used with | Example |
|---|---|---|
| mio | masculine singular | mio fratello |
| mia | feminine singular | mia madre |
| i miei | masculine plural | i miei genitori |
| le mie | feminine plural | le mie sorelle |
Family words in pairs
Almost every word has a partner of the other gender.
| He | She |
|---|---|
| il padre | la madre |
| il fratello | la sorella |
| il figlio | la figlia |
| il marito | la moglie |
| il nonno | la nonna |
| lo zio | la zia |
| il cugino | la cugina |
Lesson notes
My family: mio, mia, i miei, le mie
To name your relatives and say who is in a photo, you need family words and four forms of “my”: mio, mia, i miei, le mie.
Almost every family word comes in a pair by gender: il padre — la madre, il fratello — la sorella, il nonno — la nonna (see the table). Father and mother together are i genitori.
Unlike English “my”, Italian “my” agrees with the family word, never with the speaker. Learn the four forms as set phrases: mio before a masculine word (mio fratello), mia before a feminine one (mia madre), i miei before a masculine plural (i miei genitori), le mie before a feminine plural (le mie sorelle). With a singular family word, no article. Other uses of “my” come at the next level.
Introducing someone: Questo è mio zio, Questa è mia zia — questo or questa follows the gender of the family word, not the speaker. To ask about someone else's family, use the set phrase Quanti anni ha tua madre? — for now, just remember tua.
In a photo: Nella foto ci sono mio padre e mia madre. Who is where: a destra, a sinistra, al centro.
Italians often gesture as they talk: it's normal, not a sign of emotion, and you see it in photos too.
Common mistakes:
• NOT “il mio padre” → mio padre (no article in these set phrases).
• NOT “mio madre” → mia madre.
• NOT “mia genitori” → i miei genitori (plural).
• NOT “Questo è mia sorella” → Questa è mia sorella.