Possessive Adjectives

01

Base Forms of Possessive Adjectives

The form of the possessive adjective depends on the personal pronoun it is derived from. Note that for the third person (he, she, it, they), the words are based on the demonstrative pronouns यह (yah) and वह (vahwah).

• My: मैं (ma͠imain) becomes मेरा (merāmera)
• Your (informal): तुम (tum) becomes तुम्हारा (tumhārātumhara)
• Your (formal): आप (āpap) becomes आपका (āpkāapka)
• Our: हम (ham) becomes हमारा (hamārāhamara)
• His/Her/Its (proximal): यह (yah) becomes इसका (iskāiska)
• His/Her/Its (distal): वह (vahwah) becomes उसका (uskāuska)
• Their (proximal): ये (ye) becomes इनका (inkāinka)
• Their (distal): वे (vewe) becomes उनका (unkāunka)

02

Agreement Rules

The ending of the possessive adjective changes based on the noun that follows it. There are three main endings:

1. Masculine Singular (-आ (-ā))

Use this ending when the possessed object is masculine and singular.

• यह मेरा भाई है।

  yah merā bhāī hai.yah mera bhai hai.

  This is my brother.

• आपका घर बड़ा है।

  āpkā ghar baṛā hai.apka ghar bara hai.

  Your house is big.

2. Masculine Plural (-ए (-e))

Use this ending when the possessed object is masculine and plural. This form is also used for respect (when referring to an elder male relative) and in the oblique case (see below).

• वे मेरे दोस्त हैं।

  ve mere dost haiṃ.we mere dost haiṃ.

  They are my friends.

• तुम्हारे जूते कहाँ हैं?

  tumhāre jūte kahā̃ haiṃ.tumhare jute kahan haiṃ.

  Where are your shoes?

3. Feminine Singular and Plural (-ई (-ī))

Use this ending when the possessed object is feminine. The ending does not change for plural feminine nouns.

• उसकी बहन यहाँ है।

  uskī bahan yahā̃ hai.uski bahan yahan hai.

  His/Her sister is here.

• हमारी किताबें मेज़ पर हैं।

  hamārī kitābeṃ mez par haiṃ.hamari kitabeṃ mez par haiṃ.

  Our books are on the table.

03

Third Person Gender Ambiguity

In English, "his" and "her" tell you the gender of the owner. In Hindi, उसका (uskāuska) and उसकी (uskīuski) tell you the gender of the object. Therefore, उसका (uskāuska) can mean both "his" and "her". You must rely on context to know who the owner is.

• उसका नाम राज है।

  uskā nām rāj hai.uska nam raj hai.

  His name is Raj. (Name is masculine)

• उसका नाम प्रिया है।

  uskā nām priyā hai.uska nam priya hai.

  Her name is Priya. (Name is masculine)

• उसकी चाय गरम है।

  uskī cāy garam hai.uski chay garam hai.

  His/Her tea is hot. (Tea is feminine)

04

The Reflexive Possessive 'Apnā'

When the subject of the sentence owns the object, you must use the reflexive possessive adjective अपना (apnāapna) instead of the specific possessive forms listed above. अपना (apnāapna) also declines (अपना (apnāapna), अपने (apne), अपनी (apnīapni)) to match the object.

If you say "Ram eats his food" in Hindi using उसका (uskāuska), it implies Ram is eating someone else's food. To say he eats his own food, use अपना (apnāapna).

• मैं अपना काम कर रहा हूँ।

  ma͠i apnā kām kar rahā hū̃.main apna kam kar raha hun.

  I am doing my (own) work.

• वह अपनी गाड़ी चलाती है।

  vah apnī gāṛī calātī hai.wah apni gari chalati hai.

  She drives her (own) car.

• वे अपने घर जा रहे हैं।

  ve apne ghar jā rahe haiṃ.we apne ghar ja rahe haiṃ.

  They are going to their (own) home.

05

Possessives in the Oblique Case

If the noun following the possessive adjective is followed by a postposition (like में (meṃ), पर (par), से (se), को (ko)), the possessive adjective must change to its oblique form.

For masculine nouns (singular or plural), the ending changes from -आ (-ā-a) to -ए (-e). Feminine possessives ending in -ई (-ī-i) do not change.

• मेरे घर में

  mere ghar meṃ

  In my house (not merā ghar meṃ)

• तुम्हारे भाई को

  tumhāre bhāī kotumhare bhai ko

  To your brother (not tumhārā bhāī ko)

• उसकी जेब में

  uskī jeb meṃuski jeb meṃ

  In his/her pocket