Now that you know how to say "my" (mein) and "your" (dein, Ihr), let's learn how to talk about everyone else's things! This is especially useful when describing shared spaces like houses and apartments.
The new possessives follow the exact same ending rules you already know:
- No ending for masculine subjects (nominative) and neuter nouns.
- -e for feminine and plural nouns.
- -en for masculine direct objects (accusative).
His: sein
To say "his" (or "its"), use the base word sein.
| His living room is large. | Sein Wohnzimmer ist groß. |
| He is looking for his apartment. | Er sucht seine Wohnung. |
Just like meinen and deinen, it takes the -en ending when a masculine noun (like der Garten) is the direct object:
| He sees his garden. | Er sieht seinen Garten. |
Her and Their: ihr
In German, ihr is a multitasker: it means both "her" and "their". You will know which one is meant based on context.
| Here is her apartment. | Hier ist ihre Wohnung. |
| Their kitchen is new. | Ihre Küche ist neu. |
| They love their bathroom. | Sie lieben ihr Bad. |
Our: unser
To talk about something that belongs to "us", use unser.
| Our bedroom is small. | Unser Schlafzimmer ist klein. |
| We are buying our apartment. | Wir kaufen unsere Wohnung. |
| We do not need our balcony. | Wir brauchen unseren Balkon nicht. |
Your (plural): euer
When you are talking to a group of people informally (like "you all"), use euer.
Watch out for a spelling shift! When you add an ending to euer, the middle e drops out to make the word smoother to pronounce:
- euer (masculine/neuter, no ending)
- eure (feminine/plural)
- euren (masculine accusative)
| Is your (plural) bedroom here? | Ist euer Schlafzimmer hier? |
| Your (plural) kitchen is very beautiful. | Eure Küche ist sehr schön. |
| Are you (plural) planning your balcony? | Plant ihr euren Balkon? |
