Explanation

Quick Answer

Spanish possessive adjectives are adjectives that indicate who or what possesses or owns something.

Short-form and Long-form Adjectives

There are two different forms of Spanish possessive adjectives: short-form and long-form adjectives. Let's take a look at each type!

Short-form Possessive Adjectives

Short-form possessive adjectives are the most common way to express possession. They must agree with the noun they describe in gender and number. This doesn't end up being too complicated, because only nosotrosand vosotroshave distinct masculine and feminine forms.

Remember that these adjectives match the possessed entity in gender and number, not the possessor.

List of Short-form Possessive Adjectives

Adjective Type	Masculine Singular Form	Masculine Plural Form	Feminine Singular Form	Feminine Plural Form
First person singular (yo)	mi	mis	mi	mis
Second person informal singular (tú)	tu	tus	tu	tus
Second person formal singular (usted)	su	sus	su	sus
Third person singular (él, ella)	su	sus	su	sus
First person plural (nosotros)	nuestro	nuestros	nuestra	nuestras
Second person plural (vosotros)	vuestro	vuestros	vuestra	vuestras
Second person plural (ustedes)	su	sus	su	sus
Third person plural (ellos, ellas)	su	sus	su	sus

Mi is an example of a short-form possessive adjective with only two distinct forms.

examples
mi libro my book
mis libros my books
mi bolsa my bag
mis bolsas my bags

Nuestro is an example of a short-form possessive adjective with four distinct forms.

examples
nuestro perro our dog
nuestros perros our dogs
nuestra casa our house
nuestras casas our houses

Short-form possessive adjectives are always placed before the noun they modify and are not used with a definite or indefinite article.

Check out these examples of sentences with short-form possessive adjectives.

examples
Mi amigo peruano es guapo. My Peruvian friend is handsome.
¿Dónde están tus libros? Where are your books?
¿Son sus niños? Are they your children?
Nuestra casa es muy grande. Our house is very big.
Vuestras flores son muy bonitas. Your flowers are very beautiful.
Su carro está allá. Their car is over there.

Tricky Cases

In Spanish, possessive adjectives are normally not used when talking about body parts. They're also often not used when talking about abstract concepts or something that it is obvious that only the speaker could possess. Instead, you'll see a definite article used in Spanish, though in English translations a possessive adjective may be used.

Body parts

examples
Me duele el brazo. My arm hurts.
Tienes los ojos verdes. Your eyes are green.
Don Simón tenía algo en la mirada que hacía a la gente hacer las cosas. Don Simon had something in his eyes that made people do things.
La muchacha había perdido la ilusión por los estudios. The girl had lost her enthusiasm for her studies.
Me voy a la casa. I’m leaving for (my) home.
Se me caen los pantalones. My pants are falling down.

Possessive Prepositional Phrases

Since su be translated so many ways (his, her, formal singular your, their, formal plural your), it is sometimes helpful to use a prepositional phrase with personal pronouns or names instead.

For example, the sentence Atlanta es la capital de Georgia.(Atlanta is the capital of Georgia.) is more explicitly clear than Atlanta es su capital.(Atlanta is its capital.) - Wait, whose capital? His? Hers? Yours? Theirs?

Here's how to form this type of possessive phrase:

Possessive Prepositional Phrase Formula

definite/indefinite article + entity possessed + de + pronoun/name of possessor

examples
Es la silla de él. It's his seat.
La casa de Elena está allí. Elena's house is there.
La pizzería de Alán está cerrada. Alan's pizzeria is closed.

Long-form Possessive Adjectives

Long-form possessive adjectives are used to emphasize the owner of something, to contrast one owner with another, or to emphasize a personal relationship. They must match the noun they modify in both gender and number in all forms. They are used less often than short-form possessive adjectives, but you should still know them.

List of Long-form Possessive Adjectives

Adjective Type	Masculine Singular Form	Masculine Plural Form	Feminine Singular Form	Feminine Plural Form
First person singular (yo)	mío	míos	mía	mías
Second person informal singular (tú)	tuyo	tuyos	tuya	tuyas
Second person formal singular (usted)	suyo	suyos	suya	suyas
Third person singular (él, ella)	suyo	suyos	suya	suyas
First person plural (nosotros)	nuestro	nuestros	nuestra	nuestras
Second person plural (vosotros)	vuestro	vuestros	vuestra	vuestras
Second person plural (ustedes)	suyo	suyos	suya	suyas
Third person plural (ellos, ellas)	suyo	suyos	suya	suyas

Long-form possessive adjectives are placed after the noun they modify. In the case of long-form possessive adjectives, you do often use an article (such as el or la) before the adjective if you are talking about a common noun.

Check out these examples!

examples
¡Dios mío! My God!/My goodness!
¿Dónde están esos zapatos tuyos? Where are those shoes of yours?
Esta es mi silla y aquella es la silla tuya. This is my chair and that one is your chair.