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Possessive Adjectives: mon, ma, mes

FoundationHigherAQA

Understand Possessive Adjectives: mon, ma, mes for GCSE French with this free worksheet and full mark scheme — Foundation and Higher exam-style practice with worked answers for AQA GCSE French (8652). Possessive adjectives agree with the noun owned, not with the owner.

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These worksheets and mark schemes are original, written for Virtus Academy and checked against the current AQA specification. Every worksheet comes with a full mark scheme.

Foundation

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Higher

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Topic overview

Possessive adjectives show ownership, and the crucial French rule is that they agree with the thing owned, not with the owner.

So mon frère means my brother and ma sœur means my sister — mon and ma change because frère is masculine and sœur is feminine, not because of who is speaking. This is the opposite of the English his and her, which change according to the owner.

The consequence catches students constantly. Son livre means his book or her book — you cannot tell from son alone, because son agrees with livre. To say her brother you write son frère, using the masculine form despite the owner being female.

Revision notes

Agreement with the thing owned

Mon frère, ma sœur, mes parents.

The form changes with the gender and number of what is owned, not the owner. This is the single most important rule and the opposite of English his and her.

The son and sa problem

Son livre means his book OR her book.

Son agrees with livre, which is masculine. Sa maison means his house or her house, because maison is feminine. The owner's gender is invisible in French and must come from context.

Before a vowel

Ma, ta and sa become mon, ton and son before a vowel sound, even for feminine nouns.

Mon amie, not ma amie, despite amie being feminine. This is for pronunciation, exactly as with cet.

Key points

  • Possessives agree with the thing owned.
  • They do not agree with the owner.
  • Mon frère is masculine, ma sœur feminine.
  • Son can mean his or her.
  • Ma becomes mon before a vowel.
  • Context shows who the owner is.

Worked examples

Example 1

Translate: her brother. [2 marks]

Working

son frèreuse the masculine possessive
Son is used because frère is masculine, even though the owner is femaleexplain the agreement rule

Example 2

Give the correct possessive for the word amie meaning my friend. [2 marks]

Working

mon amieuse mon before the vowel
Ma becomes mon before a vowel sound, even though amie is feminineexplain the change

Example 3

Explain why son livre is ambiguous in French. [2 marks]

Working

Son agrees with livre, which is masculine, not with the ownerstate the agreement rule
so son livre could mean his book or her book, and only context tells you whichexplain the ambiguity

Common mistakes

  • Making the possessive agree with the owner.

    It agrees with the thing owned — son frère for her brother.

  • Using ma before a vowel.

    It becomes mon: mon amie, not ma amie.

  • Assuming son always means his.

    It means his or her, depending on context.

  • Forgetting the plural form.

    Mes, tes and ses are used for all plurals regardless of gender.

Exam tips

  • Look at the thing owned, not the owner.
  • Use mon, ton, son before any vowel sound.
  • Remember son is ambiguous between his and her.
  • Use mes, tes, ses for all plurals.

Key terms

Possessive adjective
A word showing ownership, such as mon or sa.
Agreement
Matching the gender of the thing owned.
Owner
The person who owns, whose gender does not affect the form.
Ambiguity
Son meaning either his or her.

Related topics

Written and reviewed against the current AQA specification. Spotted an error? Let us know.