Possessive adjectives in Italian agree with the thing being possessed, not the possessor. Most of the time they take the definite article — except for singular, unmodified family members.
Forms
Each possessive has four forms (m.s./f.s./m.pl./f.pl.) that agree with the noun it modifies. Loro is invariable.
- il mio libromy book
- la mia casamy house
- i miei librimy books
- le mie casemy houses
With the article
Use the definite article with possessives in almost all cases — even for things English wouldn't use 'the' with.
- Dov'è il tuo passaporto?Where is your passport?
- La nostra macchina è nuova.Our car is new.
Exception: family members
Drop the article with singular, unmodified family members: mio padre, tua madre, sua sorella. Keep the article with plurals or modifiers: i miei genitori, la mia sorella maggiore.
- mio padremy father (no article)
- i miei fratellimy brothers (plural → article)
- la mia cara ziamy dear aunt (modified → article)
Possessive adjectives
| m. sing. | f. sing. | m. pl. | f. pl. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| my | (il) mio | (la) mia | (i) miei | (le) mie |
| your (sing.) | (il) tuo | (la) tua | (i) tuoi | (le) tue |
| his/her | (il) suo | (la) sua | (i) suoi | (le) sue |
| our | (il) nostro | (la) nostra | (i) nostri | (le) nostre |
| your (pl.) | (il) vostro | (la) vostra | (i) vostri | (le) vostre |
| their | (il) loro | (la) loro | (i) loro | (le) loro |
Loro is invariable — only the article changes to match the noun.