Attributive and possessive 的
A1 结构助词「的」（定语与领属） 4 / 56
In short
The particle 的 (de, neutral tone) links a describer to the thing it describes, and the describer always comes first: 我的书 (wǒ de shū, “my book”), 老师的车 (lǎoshī de chē, “the teacher’s car”), 中国的茶 (Zhōngguó de chá, “Chinese tea”). One little word does the work of English “‘s”, “of”, and the link between an adjective and its noun.
The rule
Chinese has no separate possessive endings and no adjective agreement. To attach a modifier to a noun you use one fixed pattern:
Modifier + 的 + Noun
Everything to the left of 的 describes the noun on the right. This order is the opposite of English “of”: you say the owner or quality before the thing.
Possession: owner + 的 + thing
Put a pronoun or a noun in front of 的:
- 我的手机 (wǒ de shǒujī) - my phone
- 你的名字 (nǐ de míngzi) - your name
- 老师的书 (lǎoshī de shū) - the teacher’s book
- 朋友的爸爸 (péngyou de bàba) - a friend’s father
To ask “whose”, use 谁的 (shéi de): 这是谁的？ (Zhè shì shéi de? “Whose is this?”).
Attribute by a noun: origin, material, type
A noun before 的 tells you what kind of thing it is - where it is from, what it is made of, what it belongs to:
- 中国的茶 (Zhōngguó de chá) - Chinese tea / China’s tea
- 木头的桌子 (mùtou de zhuōzi) - a wooden table
- 今天的报纸 (jīntiān de bàozhǐ) - today’s newspaper
Attribute by an adjective
An adjective can also sit before 的 to describe the noun. A two-syllable adjective normally keeps 的 even when no degree adverb is present - 舒服的椅子 (shūfu de yǐzi, “a comfortable chair”), 安全的地方 (ānquán de dìfang, “a safe place”); it is the single-syllable ones that bond straight onto the noun (Step 2 below):
- 红的花 (hóng de huā) - red flower(s)
- 贵的东西 (guì de dōngxi) - expensive things
- 很好的人 (hěn hǎo de rén) - a very good person
Keep 的 whenever the adjective carries a degree adverb such as 很 (hěn, “very”) or 非常 (fēicháng, “extremely”): you must say 很大的房子 (hěn dà de fángzi, “a very big house”).
When 的 is dropped
Step 1 - Close relationships. With family members, your home, and a group you belong to, native speakers normally leave 的 out: 我妈妈 (wǒ māma, “my mom”), 你家 (nǐ jiā, “your home”), 我们学校 (wǒmen xuéxiào, “our school”). The drop covers only that one pair - as soon as the pair itself owns something, 的 comes back: 我们学校的操场 (wǒmen xuéxiào de cāochǎng, “our school’s sports ground”), 我家的钥匙 (wǒ jiā de yàoshi, “my house keys”).
Step 2 - Tight monosyllabic adjective + noun. A single-syllable adjective often bonds straight onto the noun with no 的: 好人 (hǎo rén, “good person”), 新书 (xīn shū, “a new book”), 大城市 (dà chéngshì, “a big city”).
Forms & patterns
Possessive pronouns (pronoun + 的)
| Base pronoun | + 的 | English |
|---|---|---|
| 我 (wǒ) | 我的 (wǒ de) | my / mine |
| 你 (nǐ) | 你的 (nǐ de) | your / yours |
| 他 / 她 / 它 (tā) | 他的 / 她的 / 它的 (tā de) | his / her / its |
| 我们 (wǒmen) | 我们的 (wǒmen de) | our / ours |
| 你们 (nǐmen) | 你们的 (nǐmen de) | your (plural) |
| 他们 / 她们 (tāmen) | 他们的 (tāmen de) | their / theirs |
What can go before 的
| Modifier type | Example | Pinyin | Gloss |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pronoun (owner) | 我的手机 | wǒ de shǒujī | my phone |
| Noun (owner) | 老师的书 | lǎoshī de shū | the teacher’s book |
| Noun (origin / material) | 中国的茶 | Zhōngguó de chá | Chinese tea |
| Adjective | 红的花 | hóng de huā | red flower(s) |
| Adjective + degree adverb | 很贵的车 | hěn guì de chē | a very expensive car |
Keep 的 or drop 的?
| Situation | Full form | Usual form | Gloss |
|---|---|---|---|
| Family member | 我的妈妈 | 我妈妈 | my mother |
| Your group / home | 我们的班 | 我们班 | our class |
| Monosyllabic adj + noun | 新的书 | 新书 | a new book |
| Adjective with 很 / 非常 | 很好的人 | (keep 的) | a very good person |
Examples
- 这是我的书。 (Zhè shì wǒ de shū.) - This is my book.
- 老师的车很贵。 (Lǎoshī de chē hěn guì.) - The teacher’s car is very expensive.
- 我喜欢中国的茶。 (Wǒ xǐhuan Zhōngguó de chá.) - I like Chinese tea.
- 这是谁的手机？ (Zhè shì shéi de shǒujī?) - Whose phone is this?
- 她有一个红的书包。 (Tā yǒu yí gè hóng de shūbāo.) - She has a red backpack.
- 木头的桌子很重。 (Mùtou de zhuōzi hěn zhòng.) - The wooden table is heavy.
- 我妈妈是老师。 (Wǒ māma shì lǎoshī.) - My mother is a teacher.
- 我们学校很大。 (Wǒmen xuéxiào hěn dà.) - Our school is very big.
- 那本贵的书是他的。 (Nà běn guì de shū shì tā de.) - That expensive book is his.
- 你的名字很好听。 (Nǐ de míngzi hěn hǎotīng.) - Your name sounds nice.
Common mistakes
- 这是我书。 -> 这是我的书。 (Zhè shì wǒ de shū.) - possessing an ordinary object needs 的 between the owner and the noun.
- 我喜欢茶中国。 -> 我喜欢中国的茶。 (Wǒ xǐhuan Zhōngguó de chá.) - the modifier plus 的 always comes before the noun, never after it like English “of”.
- 这是很贵车。 -> 这是很贵的车。 (Zhè shì hěn guì de chē.) - once an adjective carries 很 / 非常, you must keep 的 before the noun.
- 这本书是我。 -> 这本书是我的。 (Zhè běn shū shì wǒ de.) - “mine” is 我的 with the noun understood; bare 我 means “me”, a person.
- 我的爸爸很忙。 -> 我爸爸很忙。 (Wǒ bàba hěn máng.) - with family and other close relations 的 is normally dropped; keeping it sounds stiff.
Tips
- Think backwards from English “of”: the describer comes first, then 的, then the thing - 中国的茶 is literally “China-’s tea”, not “tea of China”.
- One particle covers three English jobs: 我的 (my), 老师的 (‘s / genitive), 木头的 (adjective-like “wooden”) all use the same 的.
- Drop 的 for family, home, your group (我妈妈, 你家, 我们班) and for short adjective + noun pairs (好人, 新书). Keep it whenever an adverb of degree is present: 很好的朋友 (hěn hǎo de péngyou, “a very good friend”).
- When the noun is already clear you can leave it off and let 的 stand for ”…‘s one”: 这是我的。 (Zhè shì wǒ de. “This is mine.”). The fuller “the … one” pattern is covered in Lesson 32.