su
Lemma Details
Translation: his; her; its; your (formal); their
Part of Speech: possessive adjective
Etymology: Derived from Latin 'suus' (his own, her own, its own). This possessive adjective has maintained its basic function from Latin to modern Spanish, though it has expanded to cover multiple persons and formality levels. The Latin 'suus' itself comes from the Proto-Indo-European reflexive pronoun *s(w)e-, which is also the root of English words like 'self' and 'suicide'.
Commonality: 95%
Guessability: 30%
Register: neutral
Mnemonics
- Think of 'su' as the first syllable of 'super' to remember it's a super-versatile possessive that can mean his, her, its, your, or their.
- Associate 'su' with the English word 'sue' - when you sue someone, you're claiming something is yours (or his/hers/theirs).
Example Wordforms
Cultural Context
Unlike English possessive adjectives which distinguish between 'his', 'her', 'its', etc., Spanish 'su' is ambiguous and can refer to multiple possessors. In conversation, Spanish speakers often disambiguate by using constructions like 'de él' (his) or 'de ella' (hers) when the context doesn't make the possessor clear.
Easily Confused With
Explanation: 'Su' is the formal or third-person possessive adjective (his/her/its/your formal/their), while 'tu' is the informal second-person singular possessive adjective (your informal).
Confused word:
¿Tienes tu boleto?
Do you have your ticket? (informal)
Notes: 'Tu' doesn't have an accent mark, unlike the subject pronoun 'tú'.
Mnemonic: 'Tu' has one letter fewer than 'su', representing the closer, less formal relationship.
Explanation: 'Su' is used before a noun (attributive position), while 'suyo' and its forms are used after the noun or alone (predicative position).
This word:
Es su libro.
It's his/her/your/their book.
Confused word:
El libro es suyo.
The book is his/hers/yours/theirs.
Notes: 'Suyo' changes form to agree with the possessed noun: suyo (masc. sing.), suya (fem. sing.), suyos (masc. pl.), suyas (fem. pl.).
Mnemonic: Think of 'suyo' as 'su' plus extra letters, indicating it stands on its own.