What are the possessive pronouns in Italian?

They are il mio (mine), il tuo (yours), il suo (his, hers, formal yours), il nostro (ours), il vostro (yours, plural), and il loro (theirs), each with feminine and plural forms: la mia, i miei, le mie, and so on. Loro is the same in every form.

What is the difference between possessive adjectives and possessive pronouns in Italian?

The words are the same. A possessive adjective comes before a noun (la mia casa, my house), and a possessive pronoun replaces the noun (la mia, mine). The pronoun keeps the article even where the adjective drops it, as with family members: mio padre, but il mio.

Do Italian possessive pronouns need an article?

Yes, normally: il mio, la tua, i nostri. The exception is after essere, where you usually drop it to state who owns something: questo libro è mio. Keep the article after essere when you contrast one item with another: è il mio, non il tuo.

How do you say his and hers in Italian?

Both are il suo, la sua, i suoi, or le sue. The form depends on the thing owned, not the owner: la sua can mean his or hers if the noun is feminine. If the meaning is unclear, use di lui or di lei instead: la macchina di lui (his car), la macchina di lei (her car).

What does i miei mean?

On its own, i miei usually means my parents or my family: vado a trovare i miei (I'm going to visit my parents). In the same way, i tuoi means your parents and i suoi means his or her parents.

Italian grammar · Beginner

Italian Possessive Pronouns

Written by Parrot Italian Team, Italian Curriculum Editors · Reviewed October 2026

Italian possessive pronouns (il mio, la tua, i nostri, and so on) replace a noun and say who owns it: la tua means yours. They look exactly like the possessive adjectives, but they stand alone instead of in front of a noun. They agree with the thing owned, not with the owner.

La mia macchina è rossa, la tua è blu.

My car is red, yours is blue.

What it is

English has a separate set of words for possessive pronouns: mine, yours, hers. Italian reuses the possessive adjectives and keeps the article. My book is il mio libro, and mine is simply il mio. The ending and the article both match the noun you are not repeating, so the choice between il suo and la sua has nothing to do with whether the owner is a man or a woman.

Questo è il mio ombrello. Dov'è il tuo? (This is my umbrella. Where's yours?)

How to spot it

Look for an article plus mio, tuo, suo, nostro, vostro, or loro with no noun after it. The noun is in the sentence before.

Le mie chiavi sono qui. Dove sono le tue? (My keys are here. Where are yours?)
Il nostro albergo è vicino, il loro è in centro. (Our hotel is close, theirs is in the center.)
Questo telefono è mio. (This phone is mine.)
Di chi è questa borsa? È sua. (Whose bag is this? It's hers. (or his))

After essere, the article is usually dropped when you simply state who owns something: è mio. Keep it when you pick one thing out from others: è il mio, non il tuo.

Possessive Pronouns Quick Reference

The possessive pronouns by person, gender, and number. The form agrees with the thing owned.

Person	Masculine singular	Feminine singular	Masculine plural	Feminine plural	English
io	il mio	la mia	i miei	le mie	mine
tu	il tuo	la tua	i tuoi	le tue	yours (informal)
lui / lei / Lei	il suo	la sua	i suoi	le sue	his, hers, yours (formal)
noi	il nostro	la nostra	i nostri	le nostre	ours
voi	il vostro	la vostra	i vostri	le vostre	yours (plural)
loro	il loro	la loro	i loro	le loro	theirs

Common Possessive Pronouns Examples in Italian

Possessive pronouns in everyday sentences:

Comparing Things

La tua idea è migliore della mia.: Your idea is better than mine.
I miei figli sono più grandi dei vostri.: My children are older than yours.
Il mio volo parte alle dieci, il loro alle undici.: My flight leaves at ten, theirs at eleven.

Di fuses with the article: della mia, dei vostri.

Stating Ownership

Questi libri sono miei.: These books are mine.
Scusi, questo posto è Suo?: Excuse me, is this seat yours? (formal)

After essere, the article is usually left out. A capital S on formal Suo is common in polite writing.

With Prepositions

Andiamo con la mia macchina o con la tua?: Shall we go in my car or yours?
Ho parlato con i miei genitori e anche con i suoi.: I talked to my parents and to his as well.

The article stays after the preposition. With a, di, da, in, and su, it fuses: alla tua, nel nostro.

Fixed Expressions

Come stanno i tuoi?: How are your parents?
Alla nostra!: Cheers! (literally: to ours, meaning our health)
Voglio dire la mia anch'io.: I want to have my say too.

I miei, i tuoi, and i suoi on their own usually mean someone's parents.

How Italian Possessive Pronouns Work

The forms come from the possessive adjectives. What changes is the article and what the pronoun agrees with.

Agree With the Thing Owned

The pronoun takes the gender and number of the thing owned. La sua can mean his, hers, or yours (formal), depending on who the owner is. The feminine ending comes from the noun, not from the owner.

Questa è la macchina di Paolo? Sì, è la sua.

Is this Paolo's car? Yes, it's his.

la sua because macchina is feminine.

Keep the Article

The pronoun keeps its definite article, even for family members. The possessive adjective drops the article with a singular family noun (mia madre), but the pronoun does not (la mia).

Mia madre è di Napoli, e la tua?

My mother is from Naples, what about yours?

mia madre, but la mia.

Article Optional After Essere

After essere, you can leave out the article to state simple ownership. With the article, you identify one item in contrast with others.

Questa giacca è mia, non è tua.

This jacket is mine, it isn't yours.

è mia (it belongs to me), è la mia (it's my one).

Prepositions Fuse With the Article

When a, di, da, in, or su comes before the pronoun, it fuses with the article as it does with any noun: della mia, al tuo, dai nostri.

Preferisco il tuo caffè al mio.

I prefer your coffee to mine.

a + il mio = al mio.

Loro Never Changes

Loro has no feminine or plural ending. Only the article changes: il loro, la loro, i loro, le loro.

I nostri bambini giocano con i loro.

Our children play with theirs.

i loro, never i lori.

Suo for His, Her, and Formal Your

The formal you (Lei) uses the same forms as lui and lei. In formal writing many people capitalize them: il Suo, la Sua.

Signora, è Suo questo ombrello?

Madam, is this umbrella yours?

Suo = yours, formal.

Common Mistakes with Possessive Pronouns

Incorrect: Io ho la mia borsa, Marco ha il suo. (I have my bag, Marco has his.)

Correct: Io ho la mia borsa, Marco ha la sua. (I have my bag, Marco has his.)

English his is masculine because the owner is a man. In Italian the pronoun agrees with borsa, which is feminine, so it is la sua.

Incorrect: La tua casa è più grande di mia. (Your house is bigger than mine.)

Correct: La tua casa è più grande della mia. (Your house is bigger than mine.)

The pronoun needs its article, and di fuses with it to make della.

Incorrect: Questa casa è di me. (This house is mine.)

Correct: Questa casa è mia. (This house is mine.)

Italian does not express ownership with di + pronoun. Use the possessive: è mia.

Incorrect: Le nostre bici sono nuove, le lore sono vecchie. (Our bikes are new, theirs are old.)

Correct: Le nostre bici sono nuove, le loro sono vecchie. (Our bikes are new, theirs are old.)

Loro never changes its ending. Only the article shows gender and number.

Quick Check: Possessive Pronouns

Complete each sentence with the correct possessive pronoun.

1. Ho dimenticato il mio ombrello. Mi presti ___? (yours, informal)

Answer: il tuo

Ombrello is masculine singular.

2. Questa non è la mia valigia. È ___. (his)

Answer: la sua

Valigia is feminine, so the pronoun is feminine even for a man.

3. I nostri vicini sono simpatici. Come sono ___? (yours, plural)

Answer: i vostri

Vicini is masculine plural.

4. La mia camera è più piccola ___. (than yours, informal)

Answer: della tua

Di + la tua = della tua.

5. Le loro figlie vanno a scuola con ___. (ours)

Answer: le nostre

The pronoun refers to figlie, feminine plural.

Possessive Pronouns FAQs

What are the possessive pronouns in Italian?: They are il mio (mine), il tuo (yours), il suo (his, hers, formal yours), il nostro (ours), il vostro (yours, plural), and il loro (theirs), each with feminine and plural forms: la mia, i miei, le mie, and so on. Loro is the same in every form.
What is the difference between possessive adjectives and possessive pronouns in Italian?: The words are the same. A possessive adjective comes before a noun (la mia casa, my house), and a possessive pronoun replaces the noun (la mia, mine). The pronoun keeps the article even where the adjective drops it, as with family members: mio padre, but il mio.
Do Italian possessive pronouns need an article?: Yes, normally: il mio, la tua, i nostri. The exception is after essere, where you usually drop it to state who owns something: questo libro è mio. Keep the article after essere when you contrast one item with another: è il mio, non il tuo.
How do you say his and hers in Italian?: Both are il suo, la sua, i suoi, or le sue. The form depends on the thing owned, not the owner: la sua can mean his or hers if the noun is feminine. If the meaning is unclear, use di lui or di lei instead: la macchina di lui (his car), la macchina di lei (her car).
What does i miei mean?: On its own, i miei usually means my parents or my family: vado a trovare i miei (I'm going to visit my parents). In the same way, i tuoi means your parents and i suoi means his or her parents.