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1. Forms and Uses 2. Other Ways of Expressing Possession 3. Idiomatic Uses Forms and Uses a Possessive Pronoun Replaces a Noun P

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1. Forms and Uses 2. Other Ways of Expressing Possession 3. Idiomatic Uses Forms and Uses a Possessive Pronoun Replaces a Noun P page: pro12 1. forms and uses 2. other ways of expressing possession 3. idiomatic uses forms and uses A possessive pronoun replaces a noun preceded by a possessive determiner like mon, ton, son, etc. Tammy: C'est ton béret Tex? Tammy: Is this your beret Tex? Tex: Oui, c'est le mien. Tex: Yes, it is mine. In French, possessive pronouns indicate both the possessor and the number and the gender of the object possessed: le mien indicates that the possessor is 'I' and that the possession is masculine singular. In the following table, the choice between the singular or plural form and between the masculine or feminine form depends on the number and gender of the item possessed. (Note the difference in spelling and in pronunciation between the possessive determiners notre and votre and the possessive pronouns nôtre and vôtre.) singular plural masculine feminine masculine feminine mine le mien la mienne les miens les miennes yours le tien la tienne les tiens les tiennes his/hers/its le sien la sienne les siens les siennes ours le nôtre la nôtre les nôtres les nôtres yours le vôtre la vôtre les vôtres les vôtres theirs le leur la leur les leurs les leurs Depending on the context, le sien, la sienne, les siens, les siennes may mean 'his', 'hers', or 'its'. Note that for the others, all four forms of each possessive pronoun have one English translation. Tex: Mon frère est musicien. Tex: My brother is a musician. Tammy: Le mien est professeur. Tammy: Mine is a professor. Tex: Ma soeur est secrétaire. Tex: My sister is a secretary. Tammy: La mienne est PDG. Tammy: Mine is a CEO. Tex: Mes parents sont américains. Tex: My parents are American Tammy: Les miens aussi. Tammy: Mine too. Note that à + the definite articles le et les form the contractions au and aux respectively. For example: Tammy: Je pense souvent à mes neveux. Tammy: I often think about my nephews. Tex: Je pense rarement aux miens. Tex: I seldom think about mine. Tammy: Oh! Tex, tu es si égoïste! Tammy: Oh! Tex you are so selfish! other ways of expressing possession Possessive pronouns are one way to express possession of things or people. However, you may also use the construction [être + à + disjunctive pronoun], the possessive determiners or [de + noun]: Fiona: A qui appartient cette photo? Fiona: Who does photo belong to? Tex: Elle est à moi. Tex: It's mine. Tammy: Oui c'est la sienne. Tu ne connais Tammy: Yes it is his. Don't you know Rita? pas Rita? Fiona: Qui est Rita? Fiona: Who is Rita? Tammy: C'est la soeur de Tex. Tammy: It is Tex's sister. Fiona: Ta soeur est très belle. Tu lui Fiona: Your sister is very beautiful. You ressembles. resemble her. Tex: Non, je ne lui ressemble pas. Tex: No, I don't look like her. idiomatic uses The masculine plural forms of the possessive pronouns may be used alone to refer to parents, friends, allies etc. Etre des nôtres, être des vôtres are common phrases with such a meaning of the possessive pronoun. Tammy: Quand j'étais à Lyon, je pensais Tammy: When I was in Lyon, I often souvent aux miens. thought of my folks. Tammy: Fiona, j'invite des amis ce soir. Tu Tammy: Fiona, I am inviting a few friends es des nôtres? tonight. Are you joining us? Y mettre du sien is a common phrase that may be used with any of the possessive pronouns to mean that you are doing your share, trying your best, making a real effort to contribute. Tammy: Tex, nous avons des invités ce Tammy: Tex, we are having guests tonight. soir. Il y a beaucoup de choses à préparer. There are a lot of things to prepare. I hope J'espère que tu vas y mettre du tien. you are going to do your share. Faire des + miennes, tiennes, siennes, nôtres, vôtres, or leurs are phrases suggesting misbehavior. Tammy: Bette a encore fait des siennes. Tammy: Bette has been up to her tricks Hier elle a dragué Tex toute la soirée again. She flirted with Tex all evening in devant tout le monde. front of everybody. fill in the blanks Fill in the blank with the correct possessive pronoun preceded by le, la, or les. 1. Tammy : Mon cours de français est intéressant. Et _______ Bette? (yours) 2. Tex : Ma passion, c'est la poésie. Et ________ Tammy? (yours) 3. Edouard : Tex, tes parents sont américains, __________ sont français! (mine) 4. Tammy : Je vais ouvrir mes cadeaux. Et toi Tex, tu vas ouvrir __________? (yours) 5. Tammy : A ta santé Tex! Tex : A _________ Tammy! (yours) 6. Tex : J'ai acheté mes livres. Est-ce que Joe-Bob et Edouard ont acheté ________? (theirs) 7. Edouard : Je n'ai pas connu mon frère, mais Rita et Trey connaissent _______. (theirs) 8. Tammy : Je vois souvent ma mère, mais Tex et Rita ne voient jamais ________. (theirs) 9. Tex : J'adore tes yeux Tammy. Et toi, tu aimes ________? (mine) 10. Tex : L'accent français d'Edouard est sexy, mais ________ est plus sexy. (mine) 11. Tex et Edouard : Vos amies sont jolies, mais nous trouvons ________ plus jolies! (ours) 12. Tammy et Bette : Nous avons eu nos notes. Et vous, vous avez eu ________ ? (yours) © 2004 • department of french & italian • liberal arts ITS • university of texas at austin updated: 27 May 04.
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