French possessive pronouns are the equivalents of English words like “mine,” “yours,” “his,” or “ours,” and you will use them to replace a noun that has been mentioned before or that is obvious in the conversation. Possessive pronouns are sometimes confused with French possessive adjectives. The key difference is that possessive pronouns don’t precede a noun like the adjectives do (mon voisin meaning my neighbor).
Let’s examine this quote from Les Enfants Terribles by Jean Cocteau, which I am reading at the moment:
- Ah ! soupirait Paul, quand j’aurai ma chambre…
“Ah,” Paul sighed, “the day I’ll have my own room…”
- Et moi la mienne.
“And the day I’ll have mine.”
- Elle sera propre ta chambre !
“Your bedroom will be clean!”
- Plus propre que la tienne !
“Cleaner than yours!”
As you can see, unlike in English, French possessive pronouns are a compound: you need a definite article (here, la meaning the) and a pronoun (here, mienne meaning mine, tienne meaning yours).
Another difference from English is that the possessive pronoun in French agrees in number and gender with the noun it substitutes, not the person it belongs to:
In this post, we’ll review the French possessive pronouns, how to use them with the prepositions à and de, and their rules of agreement. Continue reading and you will know everything there is to know to master possessive pronouns in French!
What are the possessive pronouns in French?
The French possessive pronouns are composed of a definite article (le, la etc.) and a pronoun that agrees in gender and number with the noun they replace, such as “le mien,” “la mienne,” “les miens,” or “les miennes.” They replace a noun that was previously mentioned or that is obvious in a situation.
- J’aime beaucoup son appartement mais je préfère le tien.Translation: I love his apartment, but I prefer yours. → previously mentioned
- Attends, c’est le mien !Translation: Wait! It’s mine! → obvious
Let’s review the different possessive pronouns in French, starting with the singular pronouns!
What are the singular possessive pronouns in French?
The singular possessive pronouns in French are le mien, la mienne, le tien, la tienne, le sien, la sienne, le nôtre, la nôtre, le vôtre, la vôtre, le leur, and la leur. French possessive pronouns take the gender and number of the noun they replace, so “mine” will have four translations: two singular (as you can see above) and two plural. If you memorize the singular form, it will be easy to remember the plural form! Let’s first have a look at singular possessive pronouns:
| Masculine possessive adjectives | Feminine possessive adjectives |
|---|---|
mon | ma |
ton | ta |
son | sa |
notre | notre |
votre | votre |
leur | leur |
→
| Masculine possessive pronouns | Feminine possessive pronouns | Translation |
|---|---|---|
le mien | la mienne | mine |
le tien | la tienne | yours (informal) |
le sien | la sienne | his/hers/one’s |
le nôtre | la nôtre | ours |
le vôtre | la vôtre | yours (formal or plural) |
le leur | la leur | theirs |
This is not my phone.
She knows, it’s hers!
Now that you know the singular possessive pronouns, let’s take a look at the plural pronouns!
What are the plural possessive pronouns in French?
The plural possessive pronouns in French are les miens, les miennes, les tiens, les tiennes, les siens, les siennes, les nôtres, les vôtres, and les leurs. To get the plural form of possessive pronouns, just replace le/la with les and add an -s! It’s easy peasy! Here is a table just in case:
| Masculine and feminine possessive adjectives |
|---|
mes |
tes |
ses |
nos |
vos |
leurs |
→
| Masculine possessive pronouns | Feminine possessive pronouns | Translation |
|---|---|---|
les miens | les miennes | mine |
les tiens | les tiennes | yours (informal) |
les siens | les siennes | his/hers/one’s |
les nôtres | ours | |
les vôtres | yours (formal or plural) | |
les leurs | theirs | |
How to use possessive pronouns with the prepositions ‘à’ and ‘de’?
When possessive pronouns are used after the prepositions à and de, you’ll need to remember the contractions that the preposition and the definite article of the possessive pronoun produce. Let’s do some French math!
| With the preposition à | With the preposition de |
|---|---|
à + le = au BUT à + la = à la | de + le = du BUT de + la = de la |
For example:
- Tu penses à ton anniversaire ?
Are you thinking about your birthday?
- Non, je pense au tien !
No, I’m thinking about yours!
- Tu vas t’occuper de leurs enfants ?
Will you look after their children?
- Je vais m’occuper des leurs et des miens.
I’ll be looking after theirs and mine.
How to use stressed pronouns to express possession in French?
To translate an English possessive pronoun like “mine” or “yours” into French, you can either use a French possessive pronoun or use à + stressed pronoun to indicate possession.
There is a little bit more to possessive pronouns, but you are almost there! Check below to understand how agreements work between possessive pronouns and verbs, adjectives, and the expressions c’est and ce sont.
What are the rules of agreement for French possessive pronouns?
Here are some important rules of agreement to remember with possessive pronouns:
The verb agrees with a subject possessive pronoun in number
Adjectives agree with the possessive pronouns they describe in gender and number
The expressions c'est... meaning it is... and ce sont... meaning they are... must match the number of the possessive pronoun that follows them.
Let's look at some detailed examples!
How to form agreement between possessive pronouns and verbs and adjectives?
Verbs agree in number with the possessive pronoun, and adjectives agree in both gender and number with the noun the possessive pronoun replaces. Remember, possessive pronouns replace the noun:
When there is a subject-verb inversion, remember the verb introducing the possessive pronoun agrees in number:
How to form agreement between possessive pronouns and ‘c’est’ (it is), ‘ce sont’ (they are)?
When using possessive pronouns with c’est and ce sont, remember the agreement works as follows:
Check the box below to remember the key facts about French possessive pronouns and then head to practice the different forms of French possessive pronouns with our activities!
In brief: What you need to remember about possessive pronouns
When using possessive pronouns in French, keep the following tips in mind:
In French, possessive pronouns agree in number and gender with the noun they replace, not the possessor, like in English.
Unlike English, French possessive pronouns are a compound: definite article + pronoun.
Remember to contract the definite article with the prepositions à and de. ❌ à le mien → ✅ au mien and ❌ de le mien → ✅ du mien.
You can’t have il/elle est, ils/elles sont + possessive pronoun. You need to use C’est + singular and Ce sont + plural possessive pronouns.
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