/su/
Translation
his, her, its, your (formal), their
Word origin
From Latin suus ('his, her, its, their own'), the possessive of the reflexive pronoun.
- Origin
- Latin
- Root
- suus
Examples
¿ , ?
Have you brought your passport, sir?
.
The dog plays with its ball in the garden.
.
His/Her mother arrived yesterday from Buenos Aires.
.
The children picked up their toys before dinner.
, .
I forgot his name, even though I see him every day.
Su is the third-person singular (and formal second-person singular usted) possessive determiner. Unlike English, which distinguishes "his," "her," and "its," Spanish uses the single form su for all three, plus formal "your" and "their" when the plural is su (before a singular noun) or sus (before a plural noun).
This ambiguity is a genuine structural feature, not a pitfall to fix. In conversation, context clarifies the possessor. When disambiguation is needed, Spanish uses a prepositional phrase: "el coche de él" (his car) versus "el coche de ella" (her car). Learners often over-construct these phrases when su alone would sound natural.
Where this fits
Used in
Stories
(47)Lo mismo de siempre
2 min read · Core 1000
Pedro conoce a alguien
2 min read · Core 5000
A Paula le duele todo
3 min read · Core 5000
Alguien que lo haya visto
3 min read · Core 5000
Casi no llega
3 min read · Core 1000
Cinco mil palabras después
3 min read · Core 5000
Cuando llegué, ya había pasado
3 min read · Core 5000
Cuanto más espero, peor
3 min read · Core 5000
¿El coche o el carro?
3 min read · Core 5000
La conductora de la ambulancia
3 min read · Core 5000
El correo a la jefa
3 min read · Core 5000
El mejor café de la calle
3 min read · Core 5000
El nuevo doctor de Paula
3 min read · Core 1000
El perro del barrio
3 min read · Core 5000
El primer día de trabajo
3 min read · Core 1000
El vecino nuevo
3 min read · Core 1000
Es importante que descanses
3 min read · Core 5000
Espero que vengáis
3 min read · Core 5000
La aventura de Sofía
3 min read · Core 5000
La fábrica de madera
3 min read · Core 5000
La fiesta sorpresa
3 min read · Core 1000
La habitación libre
3 min read · Core 5000
La llamada
3 min read · Core 1000
La nota de Rafa
3 min read · Core 5000
La promesa de Lucía
3 min read · Core 5000
Laura busca piso
3 min read · Core 5000
Lleva toda la mañana
3 min read · Core 5000
Lo que de verdad importa
3 min read · Core 5000
Lo que dijo el médico
3 min read · Core 5000
María lleva una hora esperando
3 min read · Core 5000
Más vale tarde que nunca
3 min read · Core 5000
Media docena de huevos
3 min read · Core 5000
Menudo desastre
3 min read · Core 5000
No creo que sea grave
3 min read · Core 5000
No estoy embarazada
3 min read · Core 5000
Pasen y siéntense
3 min read · Core 5000
Por lo tanto, decidimos
3 min read · Core 5000
Por todas partes
3 min read · Core 5000
Preparando la visita
3 min read · Core 5000
Se me cayó todo
3 min read · Core 5000
Se vende la camioneta
3 min read · Core 5000
Tú y tu hermano
3 min read · Core 5000
Una organización imposible
3 min read · Core 5000
¡Vaya sorpresa!
3 min read · Core 5000
El primer día de Laura
4 min read · Core 1000
Los puestos del sábado
4 min read · Core 1000
Palabras de cocina
5 min read · Core 1000
Grammar articles
(12)Spanish Grammar Cheatsheet: The Essentials, One Page
Spanish Text Cohesion and Style: signposting, avoiding repetition, en resumen
The Spanish Diacritic Accent: tú vs tu, sí vs si, qué vs que
Spanish Formal Commands: usted and ustedes
Spanish Possessive Pronouns: el mío, el tuyo, el suyo and the Long Possessives
Spanish Possessive Adjectives: mi, tu, su and Why Agreement Trips Beginners
Spanish Quantifiers: mucho, poco, demasiado, todo, cada (mucha gente vs trabaja mucho)
Spanish Register: tu vs usted, vosotros vs ustedes (and how formal to be)
Advanced Spanish Relative Pronouns: el que, el cual, lo cual and cuyo
Reported Speech in Spanish: tense backshift (dice que, dijo que)
Saber vs Conocer: The Two Spanish Verbs for 'To Know'
Verbs with Prepositions in Spanish (Régimen Preposicional): the Fixed Verb + Preposition Pairs
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su: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Spanish word "su" (his, her, its, your (formal), their): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
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