Language/Swedish/Grammar/Possessive-pronouns
Possessive pronouns are used to indicate ownership or belonging. In Swedish, they are formed differently depending on whether the noun they refer to is an en-word or an ett-word. In this lesson, we will learn how to use and conjugate possessive pronouns in Swedish.
Possessive pronouns with en-words
En-words are masculine or feminine nouns that are preceded by the indefinite article "en". To form a possessive pronoun, we need to add an "-s" at the end of the noun.
Swedish | Pronunciation | English |
---|---|---|
en bil | [ɛn bɪl] | a car |
min bil | [mɪn bɪl] | my car |
din bil | [diːn bɪl] | your car (singular) |
hans bil | [hans bɪl] | his car |
hennes bil | [ˈhɛnːɛs bɪl] | her car |
dess bil | [dɛs bɪl] | its car |
vår bil | [voːr bɪl] | our car |
er bil | [eːr bɪl] | your car (plural) |
deras bil | [dɛˈraːs bɪl] | their car |
Note that the possessive pronoun changes its form depending on the possessor, but not on the gender or number of the noun it refers to.
Here are some examples:
- Min pappa (my dad)
- Din mamma (your mom)
- Vår hund (our dog)
- Hans syster (his sister)
- Hennes katt (her cat)
- Deras hus (their house)
Possessive pronouns with ett-words
Ett-words are neuter nouns that are preceded by the indefinite article "ett". To form a possessive pronoun, we need to add the suffix "-t" at the end of the noun.
Swedish | Pronunciation | English |
---|---|---|
ett hus | [ɛt hʉːs] | a house |
mitt hus | [mɪtː hʉːs] | my house |
ditt hus | [dɪtː hʉːs] | your house (singular) |
hans hus | [hans hʉːs] | his house |
hennes hus | [ˈhɛnːɛs hʉːs] | her house |
dess hus | [dɛs hʉːs] | its house |
vårt hus | [voːrt hʉːs] | our house |
ert hus | [ɛrt hʉːs] | your house (plural) |
deras hus | [dɛˈraːs hʉːs] | their house |
Here are some examples:
- Mitt barn (my child)
- Ditt äpple (your apple)
- Vårt land (our country)
- Hennes hjärta (her heart)
- Deras valp (their puppy)
- Practice exercises
- Exercise 1**
Translate the following possessive pronouns into Swedish:
- his book
- your (singular) dog
- our house
- her sister
- their car
- Exercise 2**
Translate the following sentences into English:
- Jag älskar min katt.
- Hennes mamma bor i Malmö.
- Vårt barn är tre år gammalt.
- Han köpte sin bil i förrgår.
- Deras hus är stort.
- Sources
Videos
How to say MINE in Swedish and more - Swedish possessive ...
Swedish Lesson: Grammar Lesson 2 "Possessive Pronouns ...
Related Lessons
- 0 to A1 Course
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- Reflexive pronouns
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- Definite Articles in Swedish
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- Time References
- Future Tense