A2 · Pronouns
अपना: one’s own
the reflexive possessive
When the owner is the subject of the sentence, the possessive is अपना — for I, you, he and they alike.
At a glance
- Remember
- If the owner is the subject, the possessive is apna — for I, you, he and they alike.
- Form
- अपनाown, masculine singular
- Signal words
- अपना
- अपनी
- अपने
- ख़ुद
- Trap
- Wrong:मैं मेरा काम करता हूँ।Right:मैं अपना काम करता हूँ।
Your turn
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The form
| own, masculine singular | अपना |
| own, feminine | अपनी |
| own, masculine plural or before a postposition | अपने |
| Ram’s own brother / someone else’s | अपना भाई / उसका भाई |
| by oneself | अपने आप, ख़ुद |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is about
When the owner is the subject of the same sentence, the possessive is अपना.
राम अपनी बहन के साथ रहता है।Ram lives with his (own) sister.
उसका then means someone else’s.
राम उसकी बहन के साथ रहता है।Ram lives with his (another man’s) sister.
अपना agrees with the thing owned, like मेरा.
हम अपने घर जा रहे हैं।We are going home.
Inside the subject itself, use the ordinary possessive.
मेरा भाई अपने दोस्तों के साथ है।My brother is with his friends.
Example sentences
मैं अपना काम ख़ुद करता हूँ।I do my own work myself.
उसने अपनी गाड़ी बेच दी।He sold his car.
बच्चे अपने कमरे में हैं।The children are in their room.
आप अपना नाम लिखिए।Please write your name.
सीता अपनी माँ को फ़ोन करती है।Sita phones her mother.
हम अपने दोस्तों से मिलने जा रहे हैं।We are going to meet our friends.
6 more example sentences
मैंने अपना फ़ोन घर पर छोड़ दिया।I left my phone at home.
वह अपने भाई से बड़ी है।She is older than her brother.
तुम अपनी किताब लाओ।Bring your book.
दरवाज़ा अपने आप बंद हो गया।The door closed by itself.
वे अपने बच्चों के साथ आए।They came with their children.
बच्चा ख़ुद खाना खाता है।The child eats by himself.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
English says “I do my work”, and मेरा is the word for “my”. But the owner is the subject of the sentence, so standard Hindi uses अपना. With he, she and they this is not a matter of style: उसका would mean someone else’s.
The full explanation
Read it all · about 1 min
English uses the same “his” whether it means his own brother or someone else’s: “Ram lives with his brother.” Hindi separates the two. If the owner is the subject of the same sentence, the possessive is अपना: राम अपने भाई के साथ रहता है — his own brother. उसका then means someone else: राम उसके भाई के साथ रहता है — with another man’s brother.
For the third person this difference is grammar and has to be made. For “I”, “we” and “you” there is no confusion to avoid, but standard Hindi still uses अपना: मैं अपना काम करता हूँ, “I do my work”. मैं मेरा काम करता हूँ is heard in casual speech and sounds careless.
अपना agrees like every possessive, with the thing owned: अपना घर, अपनी किताब, अपने बच्चे, अपने घर में. It never stands inside the subject itself, because it points back to the subject: “my brother is with his friends” is मेरा भाई अपने दोस्तों के साथ है — मेराin the subjectअपनेafter it
In a sentence with ने or को, अपना points to the person in that form: मैंने अपना फ़ोन खो दिया(I lost my phone)मुझे अपना शहर पसंद है(I like my town)
A closer look
अपना in a ने sentence
In the past tense with ने, the doer is in the ने form and is not the grammatical subject, but अपना still points to the doer: सीता ने अपनी किताब पढ़ी, “Sita read her (own) book”. The rule is about who does the action, not about which word the verb agrees with.
अपने आप and ख़ुद
अपने आप means “by itself” or “of one’s own accord”: दरवाज़ा अपने आप बंद हो गया. ख़ुद means “oneself”, “in person”: मैं ख़ुद जाऊँगा, “I will go myself”. Neither changes its form.
Worth knowing (2)
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अपना as “one of us”
On its own, अपना can mean “one of our own people”, someone who belongs.
घबराइए मत, यह अपना आदमी है।Don’t worry, he is one of us.
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With को: the person in the को form
In sentences like मुझे … पसंद है, अपना points to the person in the को form.
मुझे अपना शहर बहुत पसंद है।I really like my town.
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