Possessive Adjectives: My, Your, His, Her, Its, Our, Their – A1 English

Possessive Adjectives: My, Your, His, Her, Its, Our, Their – A1 English

We use possessive adjectives to say who a person, animal or thing belongs to or is connected with.

Look at these examples:

I am Emily. My name is Emily.

You are a student. Your teacher is Mr Brown.

He is Peter. His favourite colour is yellow.

She is Anna. Her favourite colour is red.

In this lesson, you will learn how to use my, your, his, her, its, our and their.

1. What Are Possessive Adjectives?

Possessive adjectives tell us who something belongs to or who it is connected with.

For example:

I have a brother.
My brother is a musician.

She has a dog.
Her dog is small.

They have a house.
Their house is big.

The words my, her and their tell us who the brother, dog and house are connected with.

2. I → My

When we talk about something connected with I, we use my.

I → my

Look at Emily:

I am Emily.
My name is Emily.
My favourite colour is green.
My brother is a musician.

More examples:

• My name is John.
• My mother is a teacher.
• My phone is new.
• My house is small.
• My friends are at school.

Remember:

I am a student.
My teacher is Mr Brown.

3. You → Your

When we talk about something connected with you, we use your.

You → your

For example, I can ask you:

What is your name?
What is your favourite colour?
Where is your phone?

You can answer:

My name is Alex.
My favourite colour is blue.
My phone is here.

Notice the difference:

I ask about your name.
You answer with my name.

Question: What is your name?
Answer: My name is Alex.

4. He → His

When we talk about something connected with a boy or man, we use his.

He → his

Peter is a boy.

His name is Peter.
His hair is dark.
His favourite colour is yellow.
His brother is a student.

More examples:

• Tom is my friend. His car is new.
• David is a teacher. His students are at school.
• Ben has a dog. His dog is very friendly.

Remember:

He → his

5. She → Her

When we talk about something connected with a girl or woman, we use her.

She → her

Anna is a girl.

Her name is Anna.
Her hair is long.
Her favourite colour is red.
Her mother is a doctor.

More examples:

• Maria is my friend. Her house is near my house.
• Lucy is a student. Her teacher is Mr Brown.
• Sara has a cat. Her cat is white.

Remember:

She → her

6. It → Its

We use its for something connected with an animal or thing when we use it.

It → its

Look at the cat:

It is a cat.
Its name is Kitty.
Its fur is black.
Its eyes are green.

We can also use its for things:

• The house is old. Its windows are small.
• The car is new. Its colour is black.
• The school is big. Its classrooms are modern.

7. Its or It's?

Be very careful with its and it's. They have different meanings.

its = something belongs to or is connected with it

it's = it is or it has

Compare:

The cat is black. Its eyes are green.

It's a black cat.
= It is a black cat.

Look at another example:

The dog is eating its food.

It's hungry.
= It is hungry.

Important: The possessive adjective its does NOT have an apostrophe.

❌ The dog is eating it's food.
✅ The dog is eating its food.

8. What About Pets?

We often use he/his or she/her for pets when we know whether the animal is male or female.

My dog Max is male.

His name is Max.
His favourite toy is a ball.

My cat Bella is female.

Her name is Bella.
Her eyes are green.

We can use it/its when we do not know whether an animal is male or female, or when this information is not important.

Look at that bird. Its wings are beautiful.

9. We → Our

When something belongs to or is connected with us, we use our.

We → our

We are a family.

Our family is big.
Our parents live in London.
Our house is near the park.

More examples:

• We are students. Our teacher is Mrs Green.
• We live here. Our house is small.
• We have a dog. Our dog is very friendly.

10. You → Your for More Than One Person

You can mean one person or more than one person. We use your in both cases.

Talking to one person:

What is your name?

Talking to a family:

Your family is big.
Your house is beautiful.

Talking to several students:

Open your books.

Remember:

You → your

11. They → Their

When we talk about something connected with they, we use their.

They → their

Peter, Max and Anna are a family.

Their family is big.
Their parents live in London.
Their house is near the park.

More examples:

• Tom and Anna are students. Their teacher is Mr Smith.
• My parents are at home. Their car is outside.
• The children are playing with their toys.

12. Possessive Adjectives Table

This table is very important. Try to remember it.

I → my
you → your
he → his
she → her
it → its
we → our
they → their

13. The Possessive Adjective Comes Before a Noun

At A1 level, remember this simple rule:

possessive adjective + noun

Examples:

my name
your book
his brother
her mother
its colour
our house
their teacher

We say:

✅ This is my book.
❌ This is my.

For now, remember that my, your, his, her, its, our and their normally come before a noun.

14. Do Not Use “The” After a Possessive Adjective

We do not normally put the between a possessive adjective and its noun.

❌ my the book
✅ my book

❌ her the mother
✅ her mother

❌ their the house
✅ their house

15. The Possessive Adjective Depends on the Owner

This is an important rule.

Choose my, your, his, her, its, our or their by looking at the person or thing that something belongs to or is connected with.

Peter has a sister.

His sister is a student.

We use his because we are talking about Peter.

Anna has a brother.

Her brother is a student.

We use her because we are talking about Anna.

Tom and Anna have a house.

Their house is big.

We use their because we are talking about Tom and Anna.

16. One Thing or Many Things Does Not Change the Possessive Adjective

The noun after a possessive adjective can be singular or plural.

For example:

my book
my books

her friend
her friends

their house
their houses

We choose the possessive adjective because of the owner, not because there is one thing or more than one thing.

17. Common A1 Mistakes

Look at these common mistakes.

Wrong: ❌ I name is Peter.
Correct: ✅ My name is Peter.

Wrong: ❌ He name is Tom.
Correct: ✅ His name is Tom.

Wrong: ❌ She brother is a student.
Correct: ✅ Her brother is a student.

Wrong: ❌ We house is big.
Correct: ✅ Our house is big.

Wrong: ❌ They teacher is Mr Brown.
Correct: ✅ Their teacher is Mr Brown.

Wrong: ❌ The cat is eating it's food.
Correct: ✅ The cat is eating its food.

Wrong: ❌ My the brother is a student.
Correct: ✅ My brother is a student.

18. Quick Summary

We use possessive adjectives to show who a person, animal or thing belongs to or is connected with.

Remember:

I → my
you → your
he → his
she → her
it → its
we → our
they → their

Possessive adjectives normally come before a noun:

my name
your book
his brother
her mother
its colour
our house
their teacher

And remember this important difference:

its = possessive
it's = it is / it has

Now you are ready to practise possessive adjectives in the exercises below.