Learn Portuguese (Portugal): O casaco dele é novo.

O casaco dele é novo.

His coat is new.

Breakdown of O casaco dele é novo.

his (forms: dela, deles, delas)

o casaco

the coat

Questions & Answers about O casaco dele é novo.

Why does it say O casaco dele instead of putting "his" before the noun?

In Portuguese, you express "his" by saying "of him" (de + ele = dele). Because it literally means "of him", it always goes after the noun it describes. So, O casaco dele translates word-for-word as "The coat of him".

If the coat belonged to a woman, would dele change to dela, or does it have to match the masculine word casaco?

It would change to dela. Unlike some other possessive words that change based on the object being owned, dele and dela match the gender of the owner. Since the owner is a woman, you use dela (of her). The coat remains masculine: O casaco dela (The coat of her).

Why do we use é instead of está? Isn't being new a temporary state?

In Portuguese, age and physical characteristics like being new (novo) or old (velho) are treated as permanent, defining qualities of an object. Therefore, you must use é (from the verb ser) rather than está (from the verb estar).

Can I say O seu casaco é novo to mean the exact same thing?