Possessive adjectives (my, your, his/her, our, their) come before a noun, e.g., “This is my house,” while possessive pronouns (mine, yours, his/hers, ours, theirs) are used to replace a noun and its possessive adjective, e.g., “This house is mine.”
In Portuguese, possessive adjectives and pronouns must agree in gender and number with the noun they describe.
| Sing. Masc. | Sing. Fem. | Plural Masc. | Plural Fem. | |
| my (mine) | meu | minha | meus | minhas |
| his/her(s)/their(s)/your(s) | seu | sua | seus | suas |
| our(s) | nosso | nossa | nossos | nossas |
Note that, unlike in English, the possessive adjective agrees in number and gender with the noun it describes and not the subject, e.g., “meus irmãos” (my brothers). Note that we use “meus” because the noun we describe is plural, although the subject is singular. Similarly, in the example “nossas mães” (our mothers), the possessive adjective “nossas” agrees in gender and number with the noun it describes, i.e., “mães.”
One can also insert the adjective “proprio/-a” (own) between the possessive pronoun and the noun for emphasis, e.g., “o próprio telefone dele” (his own phone), “sua própria casa” (your own house), etc. The plural forms of “proprio” and “propria” are “proprios” and “proprias,” respectively, e.g., “com as próprias mãos” (with one’s own hands).
“Seu(s)” & “Sua(s)” meaning “his,” “her,” “their,” or “your”
Notice that possessive adjectives “seu(s)” and “sua(s)” can mean “his,” “her,” “their,” or “your.” This could create ambiguity. For example, “o seu livro” can be translated as “his/her/their/your book.” Similarly, “os seus livros” can mean “his/her/their/your books.” To avoid such confusion, especially in the daily spoken language, the following expressions can be used instead:
| his | o(s)/a(s) … dele | the … of him |
| her | o(s)/a(s) … dela | the … of her |
| their (masculine) | o(s)/a(s) … deles | the … of them |
| their (feminine) | o(s)/a(s) … delas | the … of them |
| your (informal singular) | seu(s)/sua(s) … | |
| your (formal singular) | o(s)/a(s) … do senhor o(s)/a(s) … da senhora | the … of the sir/lady |
| your (plural) | seu(s)/sua(s) … |
For example, “o livro dele” means “his book,” “o livro dela” means “her book,” “os livro dela” means “her books,” etc.
If “seu(s)” or “sua(s)” is used in spoken language, it is often assumed to mean “your” in the singular informal form, e.g., “o seu livro” (your book) unless the meaning indicates otherwise. Another equivalent to “o seu livro” (your book) is “o teu livro,” where the possessive adjective “teu” comes from the less-common “tu” form, the subject personal pronoun discussed in Level I, Lesson 5. The feminine form of “teu” is “tua.”
Some people may avoid using “seu(s)” and “sua(s)” to mean “his,” “her,” or “your,” and reserve its use to mean “your” in singular or plural forms.
Notice that, in many cases, the correct interpretation of “seu(s)” or “sua(s)” is easily understood from the context. Here are some examples:
| Ele emprestou seu livro para ela. | He lent her his book. |
| A mãe comprou um presente para sua filha. | The mother bought a present for her daughter. |
| Eles cuidam do seu jardim com muito carinho. | They look after their garden with great care. |
| Os funcionários adoraram seu novo emprego. | The employees loved their new job. |
| Ela encontrou sua amiga no shopping. | She met her friend at the mall. |
| Eles visitam seus amigos todo fim de semana. | They visit their friends every weekend. |
“nosso/-a(s)” vs. “o(s)/a(s) … da gente”
The informal first-person plural “a gente” can be used in a similar way instead of the formal “nosso(s)” and “nossa(s)” forms:
| our (informal) | o(s)/a(s) … da gente | the … of us (the people) |
Use of Possessive Adjectives for Emphasis
The possessive adjective can come after the noun if the emphasis is placed on the possessor, e.g., “um amigo meu” (a friend of mine), “aquela casa sua” (that house of yours), etc.
Use of the Definite Article before Possessive Adjectives
Possessive adjectives can be preceded with a definite article that agrees in gender and number with the possessive adjective. This may sound a little unfamiliar and less natural to English speakers. For example, both “meus livros” and “os meus livros” mean “my books.”
In general, adding the definite article before the possessive adjective is optional.Possessive pronouns are normally preceded with a definite article that agrees in gender and number with the possessive pronoun, e.g., “Seu celular é melhor que o meu” (Your cell phone is better than mine), “A casa dela é maior que a nossa” (Her house is bigger than ours). The only exception is after the verb “ser,” where it is often dropped, e.g., “Não é seu, é meu” (It is not yours, it’s mine), “Essa casa é nossa” (That house is ours).
It is common in Portuguese to use the definite article instead of the possessive adjective when referring to members of one’s family, “Eles vão ficar com o pai” (They will stay with their father), “Ele gosta de sair com a tia” (He likes to go out with his aunt), etc.
Next: Demonstrative Adjectives & Pronouns
Other lessons in Level II:
