👥Pronouns

How to Use Possessive Pronouns and Adjectives in Slovak for English Speakers

Published on May 11, 2025

Understanding Possessive Pronouns and Adjectives in Slovak

In Slovak, possessive pronouns and adjectives are essential for indicating ownership or relationships, similar to English. However, they agree in gender, number, and case with the noun they modify, which is different from English where possessive pronouns do not change form.

What Are Possessive Pronouns and Adjectives?

Possessive adjectives describe a noun by showing to whom it belongs, such as "my", "your", or "their" in English. Possessive pronouns replace a noun entirely, like "mine", "yours", or "theirs".

Examples in English vs Slovak

English: my book (possessive adjective), the book is mine (possessive pronoun).
Slovak: moja kniha (possessive adjective), kniha je moja (possessive pronoun). Notice how moja changes to agree with the feminine noun kniha.

Slovak Possessive Adjectives

Slovak possessive adjectives must agree with the noun they modify in gender (masculine, feminine, neuter), number (singular, plural), and case (nominative, accusative, etc.). Here are the basic forms for the singular nominative case:

my - môj (masc.), moja (fem.), moje (neut.)
your (singular informal) - tvoj, tvoja, tvoje
his - jeho (invariable)
her - jej (invariable)
our - náš, naša, naše
your (plural or formal) - váš, vaša, vaše
their - ich (invariable)

Note that some possessive adjectives like jeho, jej, and ich do not change according to gender or number.

Slovak Possessive Pronouns

Possessive pronouns replace the noun and agree in gender, number, and case with the noun they refer to. For example, in the nominative singular:

mine - môj (masc.), moja (fem.), moje (neut.)
yours (singular informal) - tvoj, tvoja, tvoje
his - jeho
hers - jej
ours - náš, naša, naše
yours (plural or formal) - váš, vaša, vaše
theirs - ich

The forms look similar to possessive adjectives but are used differently in sentences.

Example Sentences

Possessive adjective: To je môj dom. (That is my house.)
Possessive pronoun: Dom je môj. (The house is mine.)

Important Notes on Usage

Because Slovak is a highly inflected language, possessive pronouns and adjectives change form depending on the case of the noun. For example, the word for "my" changes in the accusative case or dative case.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

English speakers often forget to match the gender and case of the possessive adjective or pronoun with the noun in Slovak. Always identify the noun's gender and case before choosing the correct form.

Summary

Mastering possessive pronouns and adjectives in Slovak requires understanding gender, number, and case agreement. Practice with examples and pay attention to the noun you are referring to for correct usage.