Contents · A1
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The Croatian possessives are adjectives in form: the word is chosen by the owner (moj, “my”; njezin, “her”), and its ending agrees with the noun owned, in gender, number and case. From a name or a noun for a person, a possessive adjective is formed in the same way: Anin, Markov, mamin.
Possessive pronouns: moj, tvoj, njegov, njezin, naš, vaš, njihov; čiji#
Formation
Moj (“my”), tvoj (“your”, to one person addressed with ti), njegov (“his, its”), njezin or njen (“her”), naš (“our”), vaš (“your”, to several people or to one person addressed with Vi) and njihov (“their”) agree with the noun owned like adjectives: no ending with a masculine noun, -a with a feminine noun, -o or, after j and š, -e with a neuter noun. The question word čiji? (“whose?”) agrees in the same way.
| Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | |
|---|---|---|---|
| my | moj | moja | moje |
| your (ti) | tvoj | tvoja | tvoje |
| his, its | njegov | njegova | njegovo |
| her | njezin, njen | njezina, njena | njezino, njeno |
| our | naš | naša | naše |
| your (vi, Vi) | vaš | vaša | vaše |
| their | njihov | njihova | njihovo |
| whose? | čiji | čija | čije |
In the accusative, the possessive takes -u before a feminine noun (moju, tvoju, našu, njegovu, njezinu, njihovu) and -eg or -og before a masculine noun naming a person or an animal; before a masculine thing and a neuter noun it has the form of the nominative.
| Nominative | Accusative, masculine person |
|---|---|
| moj, tvoj | mog or mojeg, tvog or tvojeg |
| naš, vaš | našeg, vašeg |
| njegov, njezin, njen, njihov | njegovog or njegova, njezinog or njezina, njenog or njena, njihovog or njihova |
Use
The possessive agrees with the noun owned, not with the owner: a man says moja sestra, a woman moj brat. Njegov and njezin are chosen by the owner, a man or a woman, and then take the ending of the noun owned: njegova sestra, njezin brat. Njezin is the form usual in Croatia; njen is standard too. Said politely to one person, Vaš is written with a capital. When the owner is the subject of the sentence itself (“I’m visiting my sister”), standard Croatian uses svoj, a word not used at A1.
- Moja sestra i moj brat žive u Puli.My sister and my brother live in Pula.
- Je li ovo tvoj ključ?Is this your key?
- Čija je ovo torba? – Njezina.Whose bag is this? – Hers.
- Ivan i Maja, gdje je vaš auto?Ivan and Maja, where’s your car?
- Ana posjećuje moju sestru.Ana is visiting my sister.
- Njihova kuća je velika, a njihov vrt je mali.Their house is big, and their garden is small.
Difference from English
English his and her follow the owner, and so do njegov and njezin; but English my has one form, while moj, moja, moje change with the noun owned. English your is one word; Croatian has tvoj for one person and vaš for several.
Common mistakes
Moj žena je liječnica.→ Moja žena je liječnica.Žena is feminine.Njezina brat je student.→ Njezin brat je student.The ending agrees with brat, not with the owner.Ana i Marko, gdje je tvoj stan?→ Ana i Marko, gdje je vaš stan?Vaš is said to two or more people.
Practise
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Possessive adjectives from names: Anin, Lukin, Markov, mamin#
Formation
A possessive adjective is formed from a name or a noun for a person. In a word in -a, -a is replaced by -in: Ana → Anin, Luka → Lukin, mama → mamin, tata → tatin. To a word ending in a consonant or in -o, -ov is added, or -ev after a soft consonant such as j: Ivan → Ivanov, Marko → Markov, Matej → Matejev. The new word agrees with the noun owned: -a before a feminine noun, -o before a neuter noun.
| Owner | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ana | Anin | Anina | Anino |
| Luka | Lukin | Lukina | Lukino |
| mama | mamin | mamina | mamino |
| Ivan | Ivanov | Ivanova | Ivanovo |
| Matej | Matejev | Matejeva | Matejevo |
Use
The form depends on the ending of the name, not on the sex of the person: Luka is a man’s name in -a, so “Luka’s” is Lukin. At A1 these adjectives are used in the nominative, before the noun.
- Je li ovo Lukin auto ili Markov?Is this Luka’s car or Marko’s?
- Mamina juha je najbolja.Mum’s soup is the best.
- Gdje je Ivanova sestra?Where’s Ivan’s sister?
- Tatin stan je u Zagrebu.Dad’s flat is in Zagreb.
Difference from English
In English ’s is added to the name; in Croatian an adjective is formed from it, which agrees with the noun owned: Anin ključ, Anina kuća.
Common mistakes
Anina ključ je ovdje.→ Anin ključ je ovdje.The ending agrees with the noun owned, ključ.Lukov auto→ Lukin autoA name in -a takes -in.
In short
| Point | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| my, your (ti) | moj, moja, moje; tvoj | moja sestra |
| his, her, their | njegov; njezin, njen; njihov | njezin brat |
| our, your (vi) | naš, naša, naše; vaš | vaš auto |
| whose? | čiji, čija, čije | Čija je ovo torba? |
| accusative | -u; -eg / -og (person); as the nominative | moju sestru, našeg brata |
| from a name | -in (in -a); -ov / -ev | Anin, Ivanov |
Practise
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