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Possessivpronomen (mein, dein, sein, ihr)
Possessive pronouns show ownership - my, your, his, her, etc. In German, they follow the SAME PATTERN as 'ein' (a/an)! The base form changes depending on WHO owns something (mein=my, dein=your, sein=his), and the ENDING changes based on the noun's gender and case. Think of it like 'ein' with different starting letters!
POSSESSIVE PRONOUN BASES: - ich → mein (my) - du → dein (your, informal) - er → sein (his/its) - sie (she) → ihr (her) - es → sein (its) - wir → unser (our) - ihr → euer (your, plural informal) - sie/Sie → ihr/Ihr (their/your formal)
KEY RULE: These work like 'ein'! - Masculine Nominativ: mein Vater (my father) - like ein Vater - Masculine Akkusativ: meinen Vater (my father) - like einen Vater - Feminine: meine Mutter (my mother) - like eine Mutter - Neuter: mein Kind (my child) - like ein Kind - Plural: meine Kinder (my children) - like keine Kinder
PATTERN: Base (mein/dein/sein...) + ending (—/e/en) depending on gender/case
Each personal pronoun has a corresponding possessive pronoun base.
Examples:
Possessive endings change based on the noun's gender, just like 'ein'.
Examples:
In Akkusativ, only MASCULINE gets an extra -en, just like 'einen'.
Examples:
Don't confuse these! 'Sein' = his/its (from er/es). 'Ihr' = her (from sie-she) OR their (from sie-they).
Examples:
'Unser' (our) and 'euer' (your, plural) can drop an 'e' when adding endings.
Examples:
🇩🇪 Das ist mein Vater.
🇬🇧 That is my father.
💡 mein + Vater (masculine, Nominativ) - no ending needed
Context: Nominativ position (subject)
🇩🇪 Ich sehe meinen Vater.
🇬🇧 I see my father.
💡 meinen + Vater (masculine, Akkusativ) - added -en
Context: Akkusativ position (object) - masculine changes
🇩🇪 Das ist deine Mutter.
🇬🇧 That is your mother.
💡 deine + Mutter (feminine, Nominativ) - -e ending
Context: Feminine always gets -e
🇩🇪 Wo ist sein Auto?
🇬🇧 Where is his car?
💡 sein + Auto (neuter, Nominativ) - no ending
Context: Neuter like masculine, no ending
🇩🇪 Sie liebt ihren Mann.
🇬🇧 She loves her husband.
💡 ihren + Mann (masculine, Akkusativ) - added -en
Context: Akkusativ object, masculine → -en
🇩🇪 Wir haben unser Haus.
🇬🇧 We have our house.
💡 unser + Haus (neuter, Akkusativ) - no change
Context: Neuter doesn't change in Akkusativ
🇩🇪 Das sind meine Kinder.
🇬🇧 Those are my children.
💡 meine + Kinder (plural, Nominativ) - -e ending
Context: Plural always gets -e
🇩🇪 Kennst du ihre Schwester?
🇬🇧 Do you know her sister?
💡 ihre + Schwester (feminine, Akkusativ) - -e ending, no change
Context: Feminine doesn't change in Akkusativ
🇩🇪 Wo sind eure Eltern?
🇬🇧 Where are your parents?
💡 eure + Eltern (plural, Nominativ) - -e ending
Context: Euer drops internal 'e': euer → eure
Possessives follow 'ein' pattern: ein Vater → mein Vater, eine Mutter → meine Mutter, einen Vater (Akk) → meinen Vater. Same endings!
Just like 'ein → einen', possessives add -en for masculine Akkusativ: mein → meinen, dein → deinen. Everything else: add -e for feminine/plural, nothing for neuter!
Sein sounds like 'shine' (boys shine? 😄) = HIS. Ihr sounds like 'ear' = HER. Silly, but it works!
Always: POSSESSIVE BASE (mein, dein, sein...) + ENDING (—, -e, -en). Base tells WHO owns, ending tells gender/case of the THING owned.
ihr = her (from sie-she), ihr = their (from sie-they), Ihr = your (from Sie-formal). Context and capitalization tell you which!
Forgetting to add -en for masculine Akkusativ
'Ich sehe mein Vater' is wrong. Correct: 'Ich sehe meinen Vater.' Masculine objects need -en!
Adding -en to feminine/neuter Akkusativ
'Ich habe meinen Mutter' is wrong (over-correcting). Correct: 'Ich habe meine Mutter.' Only masculine changes!
Using 'sein' for 'her'
'Das ist sein Mutter' is wrong (means 'his mother'). For 'her mother': 'Das ist ihre Mutter.'
Forgetting the -e ending for feminine/plural
'mein Mutter' is wrong. Correct: 'meine Mutter' (feminine needs -e). 'mein Kinder' → 'meine Kinder' (plural needs -e).
Confusing 'ihr' (her) vs 'Ihr' (your formal)
Lowercase 'ihr' = her/their. Uppercase 'Ihr' = your (formal). Capitalization matters! 'Ihr Buch' = your book (formal).
Mein Name ist Anna.
My name is Anna.
📚 mein + Name (masculine, Nominativ) - no ending
Wo ist dein Bruder?
Where is your brother?
📚 dein + Bruder (masculine, Nominativ) - no ending
Ich liebe meine Familie.
I love my family.
📚 liebe (verb) + meine Familie (feminine, Akkusativ) - -e ending
Sie hat ihren Schlüssel verloren.
She has lost her key.
📚 ihren Schlüssel (masculine, Akkusativ) - added -en
Unser Haus ist groß.
Our house is big.
📚 unser + Haus (neuter, Nominativ) - no ending
Kennst du seine Frau?
Do you know his wife?
📚 seine Frau (feminine, Akkusativ) - -e ending, no change
Wir besuchen eure Eltern.
We visit your parents.
📚 besuchen (visit) + eure Eltern (plural, Akkusativ) - -e ending