Possessive Articles
4.5.1. The Main Idea
Possessive articles show who something belongs to.
mon père | my father |
ma mère | my mother |
mes parents | my parents |
In French, the possessive article agrees with the thing being possessed, not with the owner.
4.5.2. My: Mon, Ma, Mes
mon | my, masculine singular |
ma | my, feminine singular |
mes | my, plural |
mon frère | my brother |
ma sœur | my sister |
mes frères | my brothers |
mes sœurs | my sisters |
4.5.3. Your: Ton, Ta, Tes
ton | your, informal, masculine singular |
ta | your, informal, feminine singular |
tes | your, informal, plural |
ton père | your father |
ta mère | your mother |
tes parents | your parents |
tes amis | your friends |
4.5.4. His / Her: Son, Sa, Ses
son | his / her, masculine singular |
sa | his / her, feminine singular |
ses | his / her, plural |
son frère | his brother / her brother |
sa sœur | his sister / her sister |
ses parents | his parents / her parents |
ses amis | his friends / her friends |
Son, sa, and ses can mean either his or her. The context tells you who the owner is.
4.5.5. Our, Your, Their
notre | our, singular |
nos | our, plural |
votre | your, formal or plural, singular |
vos | your, formal or plural, plural |
leur | their, singular |
leurs | their, plural |
notre famille | our family |
nos parents | our parents |
votre cours | your class |
vos devoirs | your homework / assignments |
leur frère | their brother |
leurs amis | their friends |
4.5.6. Before a Vowel Sound
Use mon, ton, and son before a feminine singular word that begins with a vowel sound.
mon amie | my female friend |
ton amie | your female friend |
son amie | his / her female friend |
This makes pronunciation smoother.
Do not say:
my female friend | |
your female friend | |
his / her female friend |
4.5.7. Family and Pets Examples
mon père | my father |
ma mère | my mother |
mon frère | my brother |
ma sœur | my sister |
mes parents | my parents |
mes grands-parents | my grandparents |
mon chien | my dog |
ma chienne | my female dog |
mon chat | my cat |
ma chatte | my female cat |
mes animaux | my pets |
4.5.8. Talking About Someone Else
C’est mon père. | This is my father. |
C’est ma mère. | This is my mother. |
Ce sont mes parents. | These are my parents. |
C’est son frère. | This is his / her brother. |
C’est sa sœur. | This is his / her sister. |
Ce sont ses parents. | These are his / her parents. |
Use c’est for one person or thing.
Use ce sont for more than one person or thing.
4.5.9. Core Patterns
mon / ma / mes | my |
ton / ta / tes | your, informal |
son / sa / ses | his / her |
notre / nos | our |
votre / vos | your, formal or plural |
leur / leurs | their |
possessive article + noun | mon frère, ma sœur, mes parents |
c’est + singular | C’est mon père. |
ce sont + plural | Ce sont mes parents. |
4.5.10. Practice
my father |
my mother |
my parents |
your brother, informal |
your sister, informal |
his / her dog |
his / her pets |
our family |
your class, formal |
their friends |
4.5.11. Answers
my father | mon père |
my mother | ma mère |
my parents | mes parents |
your brother, informal | ton frère |
your sister, informal | ta sœur |
his / her dog | son chien |
his / her pets | ses animaux |
our family | notre famille |
your class, formal | votre cours |
their friends | leurs amis |
4.5.12. Short Dialogue
A : C’est ta famille ? | A: Is this your family? |
B : Oui, c’est ma famille. Voici mon père et ma mère. | B: Yes, this is my family. Here are my father and my mother. |
A : Et ce sont tes frères ? | A: And are these your brothers? |
B : Non, ce sont mes amis. | B: No, these are my friends. |
4.5.13. Checkpoint
By the end of this lesson, you should be able to use possessive articles such as mon, ma, mes, ton, ta, tes, son, sa, and ses, recognize notre, votre, and leur, and describe family members, pets, classes, and objects with basic possession.