Possessive Articles in Dative
How to use mein, dein, sein, ihr, unser, euer in the dative case.
Overview
Possessive articles in the dative case mark possession for indirect objects, after dative prepositions, and with dative verbs. They answer the question: to/for whose?
Possessives follow the same ending pattern as ein/kein — if you know the dative forms of "ein," just attach the same endings to each possessive stem.
Ich gebe meinem Bruder das Buch. — I give my brother the book.
Dative Possessive Forms
| Possessor | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| mein (my) | meinem | meiner | meinem | meinen |
| dein (your) | deinem | deiner | deinem | deinen |
| sein (his/its) | seinem | seiner | seinem | seinen |
| ihr (her/their) | ihrem | ihrer | ihrem | ihren |
| unser (our) | unserem | unserer | unserem | unseren |
| euer (your, pl.) | eurem | eurer | eurem | euren |
The pattern is consistent: -em (masculine/neuter), -er (feminine), -en (plural).
mein & dein
First and second person possessives are the most common in everyday speech.
Ich helfe meinem Vater. — I help my father.
Sie gibt deiner Schwester ein Geschenk. — She gives your sister a gift.
Er kommt mit meinem Auto. — He comes with my car.
Ich schreibe deinen Freunden eine Nachricht. — I write your friends a message.
The endings follow a clear pattern: -em for masculine and neuter, -er for feminine, -en for plural.
sein & ihr
Third person possessives require attention because ihr can mean "her" or "their" — context determines the meaning.
Er spricht mit seinem Lehrer. — He speaks with his teacher.
Sie wohnt bei ihrer Tante. — She lives at her aunt's.
Das Kind spielt mit seinem Hund. — The child plays with its dog.
Sie helfen ihren Nachbarn. — They help their neighbors.
Note: Ihr (capitalized) = formal "your" and follows the same pattern: Ihrem, Ihrer, Ihrem, Ihren.
unser & euer
Wir fahren mit unserem Auto. — We drive with our car.
Ich komme aus unserer Stadt. — I come from our city.
euer is irregular — it drops the inner -e- when adding endings:
- eurem (NOT euerem)
- eurer (NOT euerer)
- euren (NOT eueren)
Wir kommen zu eurem Haus. — We come to your house.
Er hilft euren Kindern. — He helps your children.
unser keeps its full stem: unserem, unserer, unseren.
Tips
- All possessives follow ein-word endings in dative — learn the pattern once and apply it everywhere.
- Masculine and neuter dative are identical (-em) — meinem Bruder, meinem Kind.
- Feminine dative -er looks like masculine nominative — "meiner Frau" (dative) vs. "meiner" as a standalone pronoun. Don't confuse them!
- Plural dative -en applies to all possessors — meinen, deinen, seinen, ihren, unseren, euren.
- euer is irregular: it drops the -e- before endings (eurem, eurer, euren), while unser keeps its full form.