10K+ students - 4.8/5
Learn with a teacher Learning materials included Practise conversation

This lesson covers Italian possessive pronouns, showing how to match il mio, la mia, i miei, and le mie with nouns by gender and number, essential for expressing ownership clearly.
  1. Possessives agree in gender and number with the noun.
PronomeMaschile singolareFemminile singolareMaschile pluraleFemminile plurale
IoIl mio (My)La mia (My)I miei (My)Le mie (My)
TuIl tuo (Your)La tua (Your)I tuoi (Your (masculine plural))Le tue (Your)
Lui / leiIl suo (His)La sua (His)I suoi (His)Le sue (His)
NoiIl nostro (Our)La nostra (Our)I nostri (Our)Le nostre (Our)
VoiIl vostro (Your)La vostra (Your)I vostri (Your)Le vostre (Your)
LoroIl loro (Their)La loro (Their)I loro (Theirs)Le loro (Theirs)

Exercise 1: I possessivi

Instruction: Fill in the correct word.

Show translation Show answers

suo, miei, i vostri, i loro, i tuoi, nostra, la mia, la sua

1. 2a singolare:
Tu sollevi ... pesi con molta forza ogni giorno.
(You lift your weights very strongly every day.)
2. 1a singolare:
Io porto sempre ... bottiglia durante l'allenamento.
(I always take my bottle with me during training.)
3. 3a singolare:
Lui fa gli esercizi del ... allenamento preferito.
(He is doing the exercises of his favourite workout.)
4. 1a plurale:
Noi pratichiamo lo yoga della ... routine quotidiana.
(We practise the yoga of our daily routine.)
5. 2a plurale:
Voi allungate ... muscoli prima di iniziare l'allenamento.
(You stretch your muscles before starting the workout.)
6. 3a singolare:
Mia madre usa sempre ... bottiglia d'acqua in palestra.
(My mother always uses her water bottle at the gym.)
7. 3a plurale:
Loro vivono una vita sana seguendo ... allenamenti.
(They live a healthy life following their training.)
8. 1a singolare:
I tuoi pesi sono più leggeri dei ....
(Your weights are lighter than mine.)

Exercise 2: Multiple Choice

Instruction: Choose the correct sentence from the following. Pay attention to the agreement of the possessive with the noun it refers to.

1.
Error: 'shoes' is feminine plural, so the possessive must be 'my', not 'my' (masculine).
Error: 'shoes' is feminine plural, so the possessive must be 'my', not 'my' (masculine singular).
2.
Error: 'gym' is feminine singular, so the possessive must be 'our' (feminine), not 'our' (masculine).
Error: the possessive must agree in gender and number; the correct form is 'our' (feminine).
3.
Error: 'program' is masculine singular, so the possessive must be masculine, 'your'.
Error: 'program' is singular, so the possessive cannot be plural 'your'.
4.
Error: 'goals' is masculine plural, so the possessive must be masculine plural 'his'.
Error: masculine plural requires the plural possessive 'his', not singular 'his'.

Understanding Possessive Pronouns in Italian

This lesson focuses on possessive pronouns, which are essential for indicating ownership or belonging in Italian. Mastery of possessive pronouns allows you to express who something belongs to, such as "my book" or "their house." The lesson is suitable for A2 level learners, providing clear guidance on using possessive pronouns correctly with respect to gender and number agreement.

What Are Possessive Pronouns?

Possessive pronouns show to whom something belongs. In Italian, these pronouns must always agree in gender (masculine or feminine) and number (singular or plural) with the noun they refer to. This differs from English, where possessive pronouns do not change form.

Forms and Agreement

Italian possessive pronouns vary depending on the owner and the item owned. Here is an overview of the common forms based on the subject:

  • Io (I): il mio (m. sg.), la mia (f. sg.), i miei (m. pl.), le mie (f. pl.)
  • Tu (You singular informal): il tuo, la tua, i tuoi, le tue
  • Lui/Lei (He/She): il suo, la sua, i suoi, le sue
  • Noi (We): il nostro, la nostra, i nostri, le nostre
  • Voi (You plural): il vostro, la vostra, i vostri, le vostre
  • Loro (They): il loro, la loro, i loro, le loro

Key Points to Remember

  • Possessive pronouns change form to match the gender and number of the noun, not the owner.
  • For example, "la mia casa" (my house) uses the feminine singular form because "casa" is feminine singular.
  • In plural, "i miei libri" (my books) uses the masculine plural form because "libri" is masculine plural.

Useful Vocabulary

  • Il mio / la mia / i miei / le mie – my
  • Il tuo / la tua / i tuoi / le tue – your (singular informal)
  • Il suo / la sua / i suoi / le sue – his/her
  • Il nostro / la nostra / i nostri / le nostre – our
  • Il vostro / la vostra / i vostri / le vostre – your (plural)
  • Il loro / la loro / i loro / le loro – their

Examples

Ho dimenticato le mie scarpe da ginnastica a casa. (I forgot my sneakers at home.)
La nostra palestra ha attrezzature moderne. (Our gym has modern equipment.)
Il tuo programma di allenamento è molto efficace. (Your training program is very effective.)

Differences from English

Unlike English, where possessive pronouns remain the same regardless of the noun's gender or number (e.g., "my" is always "my"), in Italian possessive pronouns must agree with the noun they modify. For example:

  • English: my (book), my (houses)
  • Italian: il mio libro (masculine singular), le mie case (feminine plural)

This means paying close attention to the noun's gender and number to select the correct possessive form.

Written by

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

Profile Picture

Fabio Pirioni

Bachelor in Humanities

University of Udine

University_Logo

Last Updated:

Friday, 29/08/2025 00:37