Possessives (Possessivartikel)
Possessive articles (Possessivartikel) say who something belongs to — mein (my), dein (your, informal), sein (his/its), ihr (her/their), unser (our), euer (your, plural informal), and Ihr (your, formal). They stand in front of a noun and take the same endings as ein/kein ('ein-words'), agreeing with the gender, number, and case of the thing possessed — not with the owner. So it's mein Vater but meine Mutter, because Vater is masculine and Mutter is feminine.
The base forms
First pick the right stem for the owner. Note the two tricky pairs: sein = his/its, ihr = her; and euer = your (to several people you'd address as 'ihr'), while Ihr (capitalized) = your (formal, one or more people).
- mein — my
- dein — your (one person, informal)
- sein — his / its
- ihr — her / their
- unser — our
- euer — your (several people, informal)
- Ihr — your (formal, capitalized)
They inflect like ein/kein
Possessives are ein-words: they carry exactly the same endings as ein and kein. That means the masculine and neuter nominative have no ending (mein Vater, mein Kind), while the feminine and plural always end in -e (meine Mutter, meine Eltern). The endings then change with case.
mein Vater
my father
masculine nominative — no ending
meine Mutter
my mother
feminine — -e ending
mein Kind
my child
neuter nominative — no ending
meine Eltern
my parents
plural — -e ending
Agreement follows the noun, not the owner
The ending depends on the possessed noun, not the possessor. 'Her father' is ihr Vater (Vater is masculine, no ending) and 'his mother' is seine Mutter (Mutter is feminine, -e ending) — the owner's gender doesn't change the ending at all.
ihr Vater
her father
owner female, but Vater masculine → ihr
seine Mutter
his mother
owner male, but Mutter feminine → seine
Changing with case: the accusative
Because possessives inflect for case, the masculine form changes in the accusative — mein → meinen — just like ein → einen. Feminine, neuter, and plural look the same in the accusative as in the nominative.
Das ist mein Vater.
That is my father.
nominative — subject
Ich sehe meinen Vater.
I see my father.
accusative masculine → meinen
Ich sehe meine Mutter.
I see my mother.
accusative feminine — unchanged
A note on 'euer'
euer drops the middle -e whenever an ending is added: euer Haus, but eure Mutter, euren Vater, eurem Kind. This spelling shift is regular and worth memorizing.
euer Haus
your (pl.) house
neuter nominative — no ending, -e stays
eure Mutter
your (pl.) mother
ending added → eu(e)re
Examples
mein Vater
my father
masc. nom. — no ending
meine Mutter
my mother
fem. — -e
Ich sehe meinen Vater.
I see my father.
masc. accusative → meinen
seine Mutter
his mother
agrees with Mutter, not the owner
unsere Kinder
our children
plural → -e
'mein' in the nominative and accusative
| Case | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | mein Vater | meine Mutter | mein Kind | meine Eltern |
| Accusative | meinen Vater | meine Mutter | mein Kind | meine Eltern |
Owner → possessive stem
| Owner | Possessive |
|---|---|
| ich | mein |
| du | dein |
| er / es | sein |
| sie (she) | ihr |
| wir | unser |
| ihr (you pl.) | euer |
| sie (they) | ihr |
| Sie (formal) | Ihr |
Common Mistakes
- Making the possessive agree with the owner instead of the possessed noun (it's seine Mutter, not *seiner Mutter, for 'his mother').
- Forgetting the masculine accusative -en: 'I see my father' is Ich sehe meinen Vater.
- Adding an ending in the masculine/neuter nominative — it's mein Vater and mein Kind, with no ending.
- Confusing ihr (her/their) with sein (his), and euer (informal plural) with Ihr (formal).
- Keeping the -e in euer when an ending follows — it becomes eure, euren, eurem.
Lookup Tips
- First choose the stem by the owner (ich→mein, sie→ihr), then add the ein-word ending by the noun's gender/case.
- If you know how ein and kein inflect, possessives follow the identical pattern.
- Formal 'your' (Ihr) is always capitalized, just like the pronoun Sie.
Frequently asked questions
Does the possessive agree with the owner or the thing owned?
With the thing owned. The stem tells you the owner (mein, dein, sein…), but the ending agrees with the gender, number, and case of the possessed noun — so 'his mother' is seine Mutter (feminine -e), not the owner's gender.
Why is it 'mein Vater' but 'meinen Vater'?
Possessives inflect for case like ein-words. Vater is masculine: in the nominative (subject) there's no ending — mein Vater — but in the accusative (object) the masculine takes -en — Ich sehe meinen Vater.
What's the difference between 'ihr' and 'Ihr'?
Lower-case ihr means 'her' or 'their'; capitalized Ihr means 'your' in the formal register (matching the polite pronoun Sie). Context and capitalization tell them apart.