Possessive Pronouns — Mexican Spanish Grammar

Possessive words indicate ownership. There are two main types: short forms that go before a noun (like my book) and long forms that can replace a noun (like the book is mine).

Short-Form Possessives (Possessive Adjectives)

These words are placed directly before a noun and must agree in number (singular or plural) with the noun they describe, not with the person who owns it.

(my)

Mi hermano vive en Puebla.
My brother lives in Puebla.
¿Viste mis zapatos nuevos?
Did you see my new shoes?

(your, singular informal)

This is used when talking to one person you know well, like a friend or family member.

Tu idea es excelente.
Your idea is excellent.
Tus perros son muy juguetones.
Your dogs are very playful.

(his, her, its, their, your)

This is the most versatile form. It can mean his, her, its, their, or your (when addressing someone formally with or any group of people with ). Context usually makes the meaning clear.

El chef prepara su platillo especial.
The chef is preparing his/her special dish.
Los estudiantes entregaron sus tareas.
The students turned in their homework.
Señor López, ¿su coche está aquí?
Mr. López, is your car here? (formal you)

(our)

This form must agree in both gender and number with the noun it describes.

Nuestro hijo se llama Mateo.
Our son is named Mateo. (hijo is masculine singular)
Nuestra comida está lista.
Our food is ready. (comida is feminine singular)
Vamos a visitar a nuestros abuelos.
We are going to visit our grandparents. (abuelos is masculine plural)
Nuestras primas vienen de Cancún.
Our cousins are coming from Cancún. (primas is feminine plural)

In Mexican Spanish, as in the rest of Latin America, is used for the plural "you" (). The form is used only in Spain.

Chicos, ¿terminaron su proyecto?
Guys, did you finish your project?

Clarifying 'su' and 'sus'

Because can have many meanings, you can add a phrase with to avoid confusion. This is common in both speech and writing when the context isn't perfectly clear.

Vi su carro.
I saw his/her/your/their car. (Ambiguous)

To clarify, you can rephrase the sentence:

- I saw his car.
- I saw her car.
- I saw your (plural) car.
- I saw their car.

Long-Form Possessives (Possessive Pronouns)

These words are used to replace a noun that has already been mentioned. They can also be placed after a noun for emphasis, similar to saying "a friend of mine" in English. They must agree in gender and number with the noun they refer to.

The forms are:

(mine)
(yours, informal)
(his, hers, its, theirs, yours)
(ours)

1. Replacing a noun

Mi computadora es vieja. La tuya es nueva.
My computer is old. Yours is new.
¿Estos tacos son para nosotros? Sí, son suyos.
Are these tacos for us? Yes, they are yours.
Esa no es mi maleta. La mía es negra.
That is not my suitcase. Mine is black.

2. After a noun for emphasis

This structure is very common in everyday speech.

Un amigo mío trabaja en el museo.
A friend of mine works at the museum.
Es una prima suya.
She is a cousin of his/hers.
¡Qué problema, Dios mío!
What a problem, my God!

In the course

Sentences from Lingora’s Mexican Spanish course

94 of the course's 500 sentences use this, the first in lesson 2. A few of them, with the words “Possessive Pronouns” is about in bold:

Te presento a mi amiga Anna. Es estudiante.
This is my friend, Anna. She is a student.
Lesson 2
Ya me quiero ir a mi casa.
I want to go home now.
Lesson 71
Mi papá le compró un regalo a mi mamá.
My father bought a present for my mother.
Lesson 225

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