I can name my relatives and say whose something is: mon, ma, mes, ton, son, notre, votre, leur — choosing the form by the thing, not the owner.
Whose is it: mon, ma, mes
Whose is it: mon, ma, mes
To say whose brother this is, whose car it is, and whose keys these are, you need possessives.
The main rule: the form depends on the THING owned, not on the owner. mon frère, ma sœur, mes parents.
There are fifteen forms, all in the table: mon, ma, mes; ton, ta, tes; son, sa, ses; notre, nos; votre, vos; leur, leurs. For nous, vous, and ils there's one form for masculine and feminine; only singular and plural differ.
So sa voiture is both “his car” and “her car”: what matters is that voiture is feminine. English his and her follow the owner; French son, sa, ses don't. Who the owner is comes from the conversation, not the form.
Before a vowel, ma becomes mon: mon amie. It's easier to say.
“I have a brother” is “J'ai un frère”; “this is my brother” is “C'est mon frère”.
Common mistakes:
• NOT “ma amie” — before a vowel, use mon.
• NOT “sa frère” — frère is masculine.
• NOT “leurs fils a vingt ans” — there's one son.
• NOT “mes sœur” — there's one sister.
• NOT “Théo et son sœur” — sa sœur, even for his sister.
Fifteen possessive forms
The form depends on the THING, not the owner; nous, vous, and ils don't distinguish gender.
| Owner | Masculine thing | Feminine thing | Several things |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | mon livre | ma clé | mes amis |
| you (informal) | ton livre | ta clé | tes amis |
| he, she | son livre | sa clé | ses amis |
| we | notre livre | notre clé | nos amis |
| you (plural or formal) | votre livre | votre clé | vos amis |
| they | leur livre | leur clé | leurs amis |
sa voiture — both his and hers
The form doesn't show who the owner is: the conversation does.
| In French | In English |
|---|---|
| sa voiture | his car |
| sa voiture | her car |
| son frère | his brother |
| son frère | her brother |
Lesson notes
Whose is it: mon, ma, mes
To say whose brother this is, whose car it is, and whose keys these are, you need possessives.
The main rule: the form depends on the THING owned, not on the owner. mon frère, ma sœur, mes parents.
There are fifteen forms, all in the table: mon, ma, mes; ton, ta, tes; son, sa, ses; notre, nos; votre, vos; leur, leurs. For nous, vous, and ils there's one form for masculine and feminine; only singular and plural differ.
So sa voiture is both “his car” and “her car”: what matters is that voiture is feminine. English his and her follow the owner; French son, sa, ses don't. Who the owner is comes from the conversation, not the form.
Before a vowel, ma becomes mon: mon amie. It's easier to say.
“I have a brother” is “J'ai un frère”; “this is my brother” is “C'est mon frère”.
Common mistakes:
• NOT “ma amie” — before a vowel, use mon.
• NOT “sa frère” — frère is masculine.
• NOT “leurs fils a vingt ans” — there's one son.
• NOT “mes sœur” — there's one sister.
• NOT “Théo et son sœur” — sa sœur, even for his sister.