Possessive Pronouns In Portuguese

In this lesson, we will talk about possessive pronouns in Portuguese, how to use them, and how to avoid some confusions while expressing them.

Possessive Pronouns In Portuguese

Possessive pronouns are used to identify a thing/ person (possessor) that owning another thing/person (possessed), it can be a little confusing (or challenging) as they both have a gender and a quantity, let’s look at this table, and then discuss how to make it less confusing:

Personal PronounsPossessive Pronouns (Masc)Possessive Pronouns (Fem)English
EuMeu / MinhaMeus / MinhasMy
TuTeu / TuaTeus / TuasYour
EleSeu / SuaSeus / SuasHis
ElaSeu / SuaSeus / SuasHers
VocêSeu / SuaSeus / SuasYour (singular)
NósNosso / NossaNossos / NossasOur
VocêsSeu / SuaSeus / SuasYour (plural)
ElesSeu / SuaSeus / SuasTheir
ElasSeu / SuaSeus / SuasTheir (feminine)

In this table, the pronouns changes according to the gender and quantity of the things/people being possessed:

For example:

Meu carro (my car)

Minha filha (my daughter)

Meus carros (my cars)

Minhas filhas (my daughters)

When you continue looking at the table, things get a bit confusing; try to translate this into English: Seu carro

Right! It’s your car, his car, her car

How To Avoid Confusion

To clear things up, we use four different pronouns (dele, dela, deles, delas), take a look:

Personal PronounsPossessive Pronouns (Masc)Possessive Pronouns (Fem)English
EuMeu / MinhaMeus / MinhasMy
TuTeu / TuaTeus / TuasYour
EleDeleDeleHis
ElaDelaDelaHers
VocêSeu / SuaSeus / SuasYour (singular)
NósNosso / NossaNossos / NossasOur
VocêsSeu / SuaSeus / SuasYour (plural)
ElesDelesDelesTheir
ElasDelasDelasTheir (feminine)

Note: These pronouns reflect the gender of the possessor:

O carro dele: his car

Os carros dele: his cars

A filha dele: his daughter

As filhas dele: his daughters

Continue learning Portuguese with us here.

Happy learning!

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