Unit 6.1
Tonic Possessive Pronouns
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Introduction
Possessives [posesivos]indicate possession or belonging. They always agree in gender and number with the noun they refer to: with the thing possessed.
If the possessive appears next to the noun that designates the element with which a relationship of belonging is established, it is called a possessive determiner [determinante posesivo]. If the possessive replaces the noun, it is a possessive pronoun [pronombre posesivo].
There are two types of possessives [posesivos]: atonic and tonic [átonos y tónicos].
Form
The tonic possessive pronouns have the following characteristics:
- they are placed after the word todos/as (e.g.: todos mis amigos) and before the word otros/as (e.g.: mis otros amigos);
- they vary in gender and number;
- the tonic forms of the 3rd person singular and plural coincide: suyo/a, suyos/as = de él / de ella / de usted / de ellos / de ellas / de ustedes;
- they do not always occur together with the noun.
The following table illustrates the forms of the tonic possessive pronouns:
| Poseedor | Singular | Plural |
| Yo | mío/a | míos/as |
| Tú | tuyo/a | tuyos/as |
| Él/Ella/Usted | suyo/a | suyos/as |
| Nosotros/as | nuestro/a | nuestros/as |
| Vosotros/as | vuestro/a | vuestros/as |
| Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | suyo/a | suyos/as |
NOTE: They can appear alone in answers to questions, and if articles accompany them, they have contrastive value.
Example
- Esta casa es tan tuya como mía;
- El pueblo con las tradiciones más curiosas es el tuyo;
- La cabaña al pie de la montaña es suya, él la construyó;
- El nuestro es un país muy caluroso;
- ¿La idea de jugar al baloncesto no fue vuestra?
- ¡Si están ganando es gracias a esas compañeras suyas!
Particularities:
- La comida de Elena no está mal, pero prefiero la tuya;
- ¿De quién es el móvil? → Mío.
Use
Possessive pronouns are used to express or some other kind of link (origin, family relationship, etc.) between the possessor (someone who owns something) and a person, animal, or thing.
Summary
Possessives are words that are used to refer to possession. In Spanish, they can be atonic (when they come before the noun) or tonic (they always come after the noun). Both have gender and number.
For example:
— «Esta es mi camisa»= in front of the noun;
— «Esta camisa es mía»= behind the noun.
Check the contents of the {Form} section. Then move on to the {Example} section, which shows you the usage in context.
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