1 · The particle de and modification
Possession with de: wǒ de shū
the possessive particle
Owner, de, thing: de works like the English 's, and drops out between a pronoun and family or a group.
的, said in the neutral tone, joins an owner to what is owned, much like English “'s” or “of”: 我的书, my book, 老师的电话, the teacher's phone, 我朋友的车, my friend's car. Pronouns have no possessive forms of their own: 我的 is both “my” and “mine”, 你的 both “your” and “yours”, and so on.
The owner always comes first. English can say “the capital of China”, with the thing first and the owner after “of”; Chinese has only one order: 中国的首都, China's capital. Every “of” of possession has to be turned round.
After a personal pronoun, 的 is usually left out before family members and other close people: 我妈妈, my mother, 他哥哥, his older brother, 我朋友, my friend. The same goes for a group or place the person belongs to: 我们学校, our school, 我们公司, our company, 我家, my home. With 的 these are not wrong, only more emphatic.
With things, 的 stays: 我的手机, my phone. Quick speech sometimes drops it there too, but write it. And when the owner is a noun rather than a pronoun, 的 stays even before family: 老师的孩子, the teacher's child.
The form
| my book | 我的书 |
| the teacher's phone | 老师的手机 |
| my friend's car | 我朋友的车 |
| my mother — no de | 我妈妈 |
| our school — no de | 我们学校 |
| mine | 这是我的。 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is about
Owner, 的, thing: 的 does the work of the English “'s”.
这是王老师的办公室。This is Teacher Wang's office.
Pronouns use the same 的: 我的 is both “my” and “mine”.
这把伞是你的吗？Is this umbrella yours?
Between a pronoun and a family member, 的 is usually left out.
我姐姐在银行工作。My older sister works at a bank.
Between a pronoun and a group or place one belongs to, it is usually left out as well.
我们公司在上海。Our company is in Shanghai.
The owner always comes first, whatever order English uses.
中国的首都是北京。The capital of China is Beijing.
A closer look
Zhōngguó péngyou or Zhōngguó de péngyou?
Two nouns side by side without 的 often name a kind rather than an owner. 中国朋友 is “a Chinese friend”, a friend who is Chinese; 汉语老师 is “a Chinese teacher”, a teacher of Chinese. With 的 the meaning shifts to belonging: 中国的朋友 is “a friend of China”.
This is why 的 drops so easily before family and groups: “my mother”, “our school” are felt as fixed relationships rather than possessions. With a thing that can change hands — a phone, a bag, a car — Chinese keeps the particle that marks ownership.
Exceptions and special cases (1)
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the owner is stressed or contrasted with someone else
的 stays even before a family member.
她是我的妹妹，不是他的。She is my sister, not his.
的 puts weight on the owner, and a contrast needs exactly that weight.
How to spot it
- 的
- 我的
- 谁的
- 我们家
Example sentences
这是我的护照。This is my passport.
你的中文很好。Your Chinese is very good.
我爸爸是医生。My father is a doctor.
我朋友的女儿今年上大学。My friend's daughter starts university this year.
我同学的爸爸是警察。My classmate's father is a police officer.
我们家有一只猫。We have a cat at home.
8 more example sentences
这是谁的钥匙？Whose keys are these?
我的手机没电了。My phone's battery is dead.
他女朋友是上海人。His girlfriend is from Shanghai.
学生的作业都在桌子上。The students' homework is all on the desk.
我们学校有一个很大的图书馆。Our school has a very big library.
这是我同事的电脑，不是我的。This is my colleague's computer, not mine.
你知道他的地址吗？Do you know his address?
北京的冬天很冷。Winters in Beijing are cold.
Worth knowing (1)
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Whose? Shéi de
The question “whose?” is simply “who” with 的: 谁的. It stands where the owner would stand, and the answer swaps in a name or a pronoun: 我的, 小李的.
这是谁的？Whose is this?
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
“The car of my friend” puts the thing first, and a learner who thinks of 的 as “of” keeps that order. But 的 is closer to “'s”: the owner comes first, 的 follows it, and the thing comes last.
Owner, de, thing — and leave de out between a pronoun and family.
Your turn
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