Grammar
Possessive pronouns: mine, yours, ours, and theirs
Two coats are on a chair. You can say This coat is my coat, but English usually says This coat is mine. Mine tells us who owns the coat without saying coat again.
Use possessive pronouns to show ownership without repeating the noun that is owned.
Read and practice
Read the examples and try the written questions in this guide. Listening recordings are not available for this lesson yet.
Try the written questions
Those keys are yours. /ðəʊz kiːz əː jɔːz/
The short answer
Use mine, yours, his, hers, ours, and theirs when the owned noun is already clear. Use my, your, his, her, our, and their before a noun.
That coat is mine.
Why it works: Mine means my coat, so the noun coat does not need to appear again after mine.
6 more examples
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This coat is mine.
Mine replaces my coat and completes the sentence.
Not this:This is
my coat. What changes: My comes before the noun coat, so it is a possessive determiner. -
Are these keys yours?
Yours asks whether the keys belong to the listener.
Not this:Are these
your keys? What changes: Your needs the noun keys after it. -
The corner table is hers.
Hers replaces her corner table.
Not this:
Her corner tableis near the window. What changes: Her introduces the noun phrase, while hers can stand alone. -
The final decision is his.
His can stand alone as a possessive pronoun.
Not this:
His final decisionsurprised us. What changes: His also comes before a noun, so the sentence structure shows its job. -
Those lockers are ours.
Ours replaces our lockers.
Not this:
Our lockersare downstairs. What changes: Our needs the noun lockers after it. -
The bicycles by the entrance are theirs.
Theirs replaces their bicycles.
Not this:
Their bicyclesare by the entrance. What changes: Their introduces the noun bicycles, but theirs does not take a following noun.
Read the full guide
First, find the thing that belongs to someone. If the noun follows the ownership word, use my, your, her, our, or their. If the noun has already been named and you are replacing it, use mine, yours, hers, ours, or theirs.
Find the owned noun
Start by finding the thing that belongs to someone. In My notebook is on the desk, notebook is the owned noun. In The notebook is mine, the noun is already known, so mine can replace my notebook.
Your seat is by the window. The seat by the aisle is mine.
Your comes before seat. Mine replaces my seat, so no noun follows it.
Does the ownership word have a noun immediately after it?
If it does, use a possessive determiner such as my or their. If it does not, you may need a possessive pronoun such as mine or theirs.
Use the possessive pronoun forms
Match the form to the owner: I becomes mine, you becomes yours, he becomes his, she becomes hers, we becomes ours, and they becomes theirs. The owner controls the choice, even when the owned thing is singular or plural.
| Owner | Before a noun | Without the noun |
|---|---|---|
| I | my folder | The folder is mine. |
| you | your folder | The folder is yours. |
| she | her folder | The folder is hers. |
| we | our folders | The folders are ours. |
| they | their folders | The folders are theirs. |
Do not add a noun after mine or yours
A possessive pronoun already includes the ownership idea and the noun phrase. Do not add another noun after it. Use my bag, not mine bag. Use This bag is mine, not This bag is mine bag.
Use a possessive determiner.
Our meeting starts at nine.
Use a possessive pronoun.
The meeting at nine is ours.
-
Not this:
This is ours room.Say: This is our room.
Our introduces the noun room.
-
Not this:
This room is our.Say: This room is ours.
Ours replaces our room when no noun follows.
Answer questions about ownership
Possessive pronouns are useful when the question already names the thing. After Whose is this? you can answer It is mine, It is hers, or It is theirs. The listener already knows what this refers to.
-
Whose umbrella is on the bench? It is ours.
Why it works: Ours replaces our umbrella.
-
Which jackets belong to the visitors? The blue ones are theirs.
Why it works: Theirs replaces the visitors' jackets.
How can you answer Whose laptop is this without repeating laptop?
Say It is mine, yours, his, hers, ours, or theirs, depending on the owner.
Use possessive pronouns after of
English also uses possessive pronouns after of to describe a relationship. A neighbor of mine means one of my neighbors. A suggestion of theirs means one of their suggestions. This pattern is common when the noun has an article or another description.
A former colleague of hers recommended the course.
Of hers means of her colleagues. It does not mean that the colleague owns her.
Complete the phrase: one of my ideas or an idea of ___.
Use mine: an idea of mine. Mine replaces my ideas after of.
Check spelling before you write
Possessive pronouns do not use apostrophes. Write yours, hers, ours, and theirs. The apostrophe in a name such as Maya's shows possession in a different pattern. Keep the two patterns separate.
This notebook is theirs, but Maya's notebook is on the shelf.
Theirs is a possessive pronoun with no apostrophe. Maya's is a name plus possessive 's before the noun notebook.
Before you go
Remember this
Use a possessive pronoun when the owned noun is already understood: This one is mine, and those are theirs. Use a possessive determiner when the noun follows: my bag, their bicycles. Check whether the noun is present, then choose the form that fits.
Practice with the written examples
You can practice with the written questions in the Learn tab. Each answer includes an explanation.
Try the written questionsListening test not available yet
This lesson does not have the recordings needed for a listening test. Use the written questions in the guide to check your understanding.
Try the written questionsQuestions about "Possessive pronouns: mine, yours, ours, and theirs"
What is a possessive pronoun?
A possessive pronoun shows who owns something and replaces the owned noun phrase. Mine can mean my coat, and theirs can mean their bicycles, so the noun does not need to be repeated.
This coat is mine.
What is the difference between my and mine?
My is a possessive determiner that comes before a noun, as in my notebook. Mine is a possessive pronoun that replaces the phrase, as in The notebook is mine. Check whether a noun follows the ownership word.
This is my coat.
Can I put a noun after yours or ours?
No. Yours and ours already replace an owned noun phrase. Write your seats or our room when the noun follows. Write The seats are yours or The room is ours when the noun is already understood.
Are these keys yours?
Why do possessive pronouns not have apostrophes?
The standard possessive pronoun forms are yours, hers, ours, and theirs, without apostrophes. An apostrophe can show possession with a noun or name, such as Maya's notebook, but it is not used in these pronoun forms.
Are these your keys?
How do I choose between our and ours?
Use our before a noun: our lockers. Use ours when the noun is already clear: Those lockers are ours. Both forms refer to the speaker and other people, but only ours can stand without a following noun.
The corner table is hers.