A2.28 - Exercise and lifestyle

Possessive pronouns: mein, dein, sein, ...

Possesivpronomen: mein, dein, sein, ...

Possessivpronomen zeigen Besitz und passen sich an den Fall des Nomens an.

(Possessive pronouns show ownership and change depending on the case of the noun.)

What to decide first: owner vs. noun

German possessives have two jobs:

  • Who owns it? (I/you/he/she/we/you all/they)
  • What is the noun like? (gender + singular/plural) in the nominative

In this chapter you are in the nominative (the noun is the subject or after sein/werden).

The core pattern in nominative: “no ending” vs. “-e”

Noun type Ending on the possessive Examples
Masculine / Neuter (singular) no ending mein Laptop, dein Schlüssel, sein Handy
Feminine (singular) -e meine Tasche, deine E-Mail-Adresse, ihre Ausdauer
Plural -e unsere Unterlagen, eure Kinder, ihre Übungen

Shortcut: In nominative, you mainly choose between mein and meine (same for dein/…, unser/…, ihr/…).

Step-by-step self-check (fast and reliable)

  1. Find the noun you describe: Laptop? Tasche? Unterlagen?
  2. Check its gender/number with the article you learned:
    • der → masculine → mein
    • das → neuter → mein
    • die (singular) → feminine → meine
    • die (plural) → plural → meine
  3. Choose the owner: mein/dein/sein/ihr/unser/euer/ihr
  4. Combine: owner-word + correct ending (Ø or -e)

Common trap: don’t use “his/her” based on the owner’s gender

In German, the ending follows the noun, not the person.

  • Maria + Laptop (der Laptop) → ihr Laptop (not ihre Laptop)
  • Paul + Tasche (die Tasche) → seine Tasche (not sein Tasche)

Owner decides: sein (his) vs. ihr (her/their/your formal). Noun decides: Ø vs. -e.

Special forms that feel “irregular”: euer → eur-

euer often drops the second e when an ending is added:

  • der Plan → euer Plan
  • die Adresse → eure Adresse (not euere in normal modern usage)
  • die Kinder → eure Kinder

“ihr/ihre” has three meanings: use context

ihr/ihre can mean:

  • her (sie = she)
  • their (sie = they)
  • your formal (Sie = you)

The form looks the same; the situation tells you which meaning is intended.

Mini test: pick the correct form (nominative)

  • Das ist ___ Schlüssel. (der Schlüssel) → mein
  • Das ist ___ Tasche. (die Tasche) → deine
  • Das sind ___ Unterlagen. (die Unterlagen, plural) → unsere
  • Ist das ___ Handy? (das Handy) → sein / ihr (depends on the owner)

If you can explain your choice with der/das → Ø and die (sg/pl) → -e, you’ve got the rule.

  1. We use mein, dein, sein, ihr, unser, euer when the possessive pronoun refers to a masculine or neuter noun.
  2. We use meine, deine, seine, ihre, unsere, eure when the possessive pronoun refers to a feminine noun or to the plural.
Nominativ (nominative)Maskulin/ Neutrum (masculine/ neuter)Feminin (feminine)Plural (plural)
ichmeinmeinemeine
dudeindeinedeine
erseinseineseine
esseinseineseine
sieihrihreihre
wirunserunsereunsere
ihreuereureeure
sie/ Sieihrihreihre

 

Exercise 1: Multiple choice

Instruction: Choose the correct answer

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1. Ist das ___ Workout-Plan oder der von deinem Freund?

Is that ___ workout plan or your friend's?

2. Ich möchte gern ___ Probetrainings für nächste Woche buchen.

I would like to book ___ trial training sessions for next week.

3. Er macht jeden Morgen ___ Krafttraining, auch wenn er wenig Zeit hat.

He does ___ strength training every morning, even when he has little time.

4. Sie findet ___ Ausdauer wichtig und geht zweimal pro Woche joggen.

She thinks ___ stamina is important and goes jogging twice a week.

Exercise 2: Rewrite the phrases

Instruction: Rewrite the sentences with the appropriate possessive pronoun in the nominative (mein/dein/sein/ihr/unser/euer + correct ending). Example: “Das ist der Laptop von mir.” → “Das ist mein Laptop.”

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Show/Hide translation Show/Hide hints
  1. Das ist der Schlüssel von mir.
    ⇒ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Example
    Das ist mein Schlüssel.
    (That is my key.)
  2. Das ist die Tasche von dir.
    ⇒ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Example
    Das ist deine Tasche.
    (That is your bag.)
  3. Das ist das Handy von ihm.
    ⇒ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Example
    Das ist sein Handy.
    (That is his phone.)
  4. Das sind die Unterlagen von uns.
    ⇒ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Example
    Das sind unsere Unterlagen.
    (Those are our documents.)

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This content has been designed and reviewed by the coLanguage pedagogical team: About coLanguage

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Louis Fernando Hess

Bachelor of Science - Intercultural Business Psychology

Hamm-Lippstadt University of Applied Sciences

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Germany


Last Updated:

Thursday, 30/04/2026 17:02