Possessivos: meu, minha, seu, dele/dela, nosso
Possessivos: meu, minha, seu, dele/dela, nosso means “Possessives (my, your, his/her, our) agree with the thing owned; Brazilians often use dele/dela after the noun for clarity”. In Portuguese the possessive agrees in gender and number with the thing owned, not with the owner: minha casa (my house, feminine), meus livros (my books, plural). Formation: possessivo + substantivo (concorda em gênero/número com a coisa possuída) | substantivo + dele/dela
Possessives (my, your, his/her, our) agree with the thing owned; Brazilians often use dele/dela after the noun for clarity
A1Formation
possessivo + substantivo (concorda em gênero/número com a coisa possuída) | substantivo + dele/dela
Explanation
In Portuguese the possessive agrees in gender and number with the thing owned, not with the owner: minha casa (my house, feminine), meus livros (my books, plural). The main forms are meu/minha (my), seu/sua (your), nosso/nossa (our), and dele/dela (his/her). The article before the possessive is optional in Brazil, so o meu carro and meu carro are equally natural. Because seu/sua can mean both "your" and "his/her," Brazilians very often avoid ambiguity by saying o carro dele (his car) or a casa dela (her house), placing dele/dela right after the noun. Spanish speakers know this ambiguity from su, resolved with de él / de ella — the Portuguese solution works the same way.
Examples
Note
Remember: agreement is with the thing owned, so a woman says os meus sapatos (masculine, because sapatos is masculine). When talking about a third person, prefer o livro dele / a casa dela over seu/sua in speech — it's clearer and more common in Brazil.
FAQ
Possessivos: meu, minha, seu, dele/dela, nosso — what does it mean and how is it used?
Possessives (my, your, his/her, our) agree with the thing owned; Brazilians often use dele/dela after the noun for clarity. In Portuguese the possessive agrees in gender and number with the thing owned, not with the owner: minha casa (my house, feminine), meus livros (my books, plural). The main forms are meu/minha (my), seu/sua (your), nosso/nossa (our), and dele/dela (his/her). The article before the possessive is optional in Brazil, so o meu carro and meu carro are equally natural. Because seu/sua can mean both "your" and "his/her," Brazilians very often avoid ambiguity by saying o carro dele (his car) or a casa dela (her house), placing dele/dela right after the noun. Spanish speakers know this ambiguity from su, resolved with de él / de ella — the Portuguese solution works the same way.
Possessivos: meu, minha, seu, dele/dela, nosso — how do you form it?
possessivo + substantivo (concorda em gênero/número com a coisa possuída) | substantivo + dele/dela
Possessivos: meu, minha, seu, dele/dela, nosso — any usage notes?
Remember: agreement is with the thing owned, so a woman says os meus sapatos (masculine, because sapatos is masculine). When talking about a third person, prefer o livro dele / a casa dela over seu/sua in speech — it's clearer and more common in Brazil.