 |
|
| Share / Tweet / Pin Me! | |
Constructions possessives
French has four different possessive constructions, which can seem daunting until you realize that English does too – you’ve probably just never thought about them before. This page offers a quick summary of the different ways to express possession in French; click the links for detailed explanations about how to use each possessive form.
Possessive de = Apostrophe s
State the name or noun which owns something
| la sœur de Gilbert | Gilbert’s sister | |
| l’appartement des étudiants | the students’ apartment |
Possessive à = Of mine/yours/his … / To me/you/him
Stress who owns something
| C’est un ami à moi. | He’s a friend of mine. | |
| Cette maison est à eux. | This house belongs to them. |
Possessive adjectives = My, your, his, her, its, our, their
Modify a noun to indicate who or what owns it
| Ma sœur | My sister | |
| Leur maison | Their house |
Possessive pronouns = Mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, theirs
Replace possessive adjective + noun
| Ce n’est pas ton stylo, c’est le mien. | It’s not your pen, it’s mine. | |
| Je ne sais pas si ce sac est le tien ou le sien. | I don’t know if this bag is yours or his. |
Related lessons
- PwLF super list of possession lessons
- Expressing possession with dont
- Adjectives
- Prepositions
- Pronouns
En español
Share / Tweet / Pin Me!
This free website is created with love and a great deal of work. If you love it, please consider making a 
The mountain of French verb conjugations you have to learn can be overwhelming – even just in the classroom where you have plenty of time to think about the correct response. Once you start talking to people in the real world, trying to figure out the appropriate verb conjugation can leave you speechless – literally. So what’s the solution? Learn, then practice, practice, practice!
Inverting subjects and verbs is easy enough – vous voyez => voyez-vous, but where do object, adverbial, and reflexive pronouns go? And what about negation? Take a look at this lesson to learn about all the possibilities.
Magnetic poetry is a fun little tool you can use to learn and practice French. 500 magnets with words and parts of words help you to express yourself in a unique and creative way.