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3.10: Possessivi

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    Aggettivi possessivi

    Italian possessive adjectives agree in gender (masculine or feminine) and number (singular or plural) with the noun they go with: the object possessed, not the possessor. Note that the article is normally part of the possessive form.

      maschile singolare maschile plurale femminile singolare femminile plurale
    my il mio i miei la mia le mie
    your il tuo i tuoi la tua le tue
    his/her/its il suo i suoi la sua le sue
    our il nostro i nostri la nostra le nostre
    your il vostro i vostri la vostra le vostre
    their il loro i loro la loro le loro
    1. No distinction is made between his and her. If clarification is need, use di lui or di lei.
    Lucia e il suo amico
Lucia and her friend

Gino e il suo amico
Gino and his friend

l’amico di lei
her friend

l’amico di lui
his friend
    1. Possessive adjectives aren’t normally used when possession is obvious, particularly with parts of the body and items of clothing.
    Si è rotta il braccio
She broke her arm

Mi metto la giacca
I’m putting my coat on

Alzano sempre la voce
They always raise their voices
    1. When a preposition is used with a possessive, remember to combine the preposition with the article.
    Quante stanze ci sono nel vostro appartamento?
How many rooms are there in your apartment?
    1. The adjective proprio is used to express one’s or one’s own.
    Bisogna accettare le proprie responsabilità.
One must accept one’s responsibilities.
    1. The indefinite article is used in front of the possessive adjective to express of mine, of yours, etc.
    un suo amico        
a friend of his/hers

un nostro parente
a relative of ours

un mio studente  
one of my students
    1. In some common expressions the possessive is used without any article and follows the noun.
    a casa mia (tua, sua…)
at my place/house

non è colpa mia (tua, sua…)
it’s not my fault

da parte nostra
on our behalf 

sono affari tuoi
it’s your business

per conto suo
on his/her own

a loro disposizione
at their disposal

    Aggettivi possessivi + membri della famiglia (relatives)

    The possessive adjective is used without the article when all the following conditions are met:

    • it refers to a noun expressing a family relationship in the singular form,
    • the noun is not modified by an adjective or a suffix (-ino, -one, -etto).
    • the possessive is NOT “loro”.
    • NOTE that he possessive also retains the article with endearing terms.
    no article
     mio padre          (my father)
    tua madre         (your mother)
    suo fratello        (his/her brother)
    nostra sorella    (our sister)
    vostro cugino    (your cousin)

    article
    le mie cugine (my cousins) plural family members
    il loro zio (their uncle) loro always retains the article
    la tua zia italiana (your Italian aunt) the noun is modified by an adjective
    la tua sorellina (your little sister) the noun is modified by “-ina”
    Il suo papà (her/his dad) endearing term for “padre”

    Note:

    mio marito    il mio futuro marito     il mio maritino
my husband    my future husband        my hubby

mia madre     la mia cara madre        la mia mamma
my mother     my dear mother           my mom

    Pronomi possessivi

    Italian possessive pronouns:

    1. have the same forms as possessive adjectives but are not accompanied by a noun;
    2. agree in gender (masculine or feminine) and number (singular or plural) with the noun(s) that they replace (not with the possessor);
    3. retain the article (il, i, la, le) even when referring to a family member in the singular.

      maschile singolare maschile plurale femminile singolare femminile plurale
    mine il mio i miei la mia le mie
    yours il tuo i tuoi la tua le tue
    his/hers/its il suo i suoi la sua le sue
    ours il nostro i nostri la nostra le nostre
    yours il vostro i vostri la vostra le vostre
    theirs il loro i loro la loro le loro 
    Il tuo giardino è grande; il mio è piccolo.
Your garden is big; mine is small.

Sua madre è italiana; la mia no.
His/her mother is Italian; mine isn’t.

    4. The article is not normally used when the possessive pronoun follows a form of essere, but it can be used for contrast.

    - È tua questa borsa?  - No, quella là è la mia
  Is this bag yours?     No, that one is mine

    5. The expressions i miei, i tuoi, etc., are often used to refer to relatives/family.

    Vado in vacanza con i miei.
I’m going on vacation with my family/my parents.

I tuoi sono molto simpatici.
Your relatives/parents are very nice.

    Espressioni utili

    • You can use DA + a person’s name (or a noun referring to a person) instead of “a/in casa di”, “al negozio di”, “al ristorante di” + name:
      • mangiamo da Gino (we eat at Gino’s)
    • Note the use of quello/a/i/e di + noun in phrases like the following:
      • i miei amici e quelli di Anna (my friends and Anna’s)

     

     

     

     

     

    This page titled 3.10: Possessivi is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Cinzia Blum and Lucia Gemmani (Iowa State University Digital Press) via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform.