French possessive pronouns - le mien, le tien
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Sign up for freeBy using possessive pronouns (French: les pronoms possessifs) you are able to replace a noun and show that something or someone belongs to you.
In the French language we have to differ between:
Possessive adjectives which are placed in front of a noun and indicate to whom it belongs.
Possessive pronouns which are used to replace a noun.
Lesson outline
HideFrench possessive pronouns chart
Below you can find a chart which lists all French possessive pronouns you need to know:
| Masculine singular | Feminine singular | Masculine plural | Feminine plural | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| le mien | la mienne | les miens | les miennes | mine |
| le tien | la tienne | les tiens | les tiennes | yours |
| le sien | la sienne | les siens | les siennes | his/hers |
| le nôtre | la nôtre | les nôtres | les nôtres | ours |
| le vôtre | la vôtre | les vôtres | les vôtres | yours |
| le leur | la leur | les leurs | les leurs | theirs |
Keep in mind that in French possessive pronouns have to agree with the noun they replace NOT with the person who owns that thing.
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ALEXANDRE B. 
Hélène R.
Jonathan B.
Dana S. 
Edith L. 
Soumaia Saadia M. 
Séveline A.
Laetitia G.
Daniel D.
Darya M. 
Contracted possessive pronouns
There are two different kinds of possessive pronouns in the French language:
- Regular possessive pronouns (look at the chart above)
- Contracted possessive pronouns
Contracted pronouns with à
For forming contracted possessive pronouns correctly you have to know that in general à combined with the definite article le becomes au, and à with les becomes aux.
| Composition | Contracted possessive pronoun |
|---|---|
| à + le mien | au mien |
| à + les miens | aux miens |
| à + les miennes | aux miennes |
Contracted pronouns with de
Also pay attention that de with the definite article le becomes du, and de with les becomes des.
| Composition | Contracted possessive pronoun |
|---|---|
| de + le mien | du mien |
| de + les miens | des miens |
| de + les miennes | des miennes |
Examples
- J'ai mon livre et non pas le tien. (I have my book and not yours.)
- Voici tes billets.Où sont les miens? (Here are your tickets. Where are mine?)
- Je préfère mon livre au tien. (I prefer my book to yours.)
- J'ai besoin de mes livres. Ont-ils besoin des leurs? (I need my book. Do they need theirs?)