Two ways to say "my book"
Persian can show the owner with a pronoun linked by ezafe, or with a short suffix on the noun. The suffix is the everyday choice.
- کتابِ من (ketāb-e man) — my book
- کتابم (ketābam) — my book
The suffixes
| Owner | After a consonant: کتاب | After silent ه: خانه | After ا or و: پا (foot) | Ezafe + pronoun |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| my | کتابم (ketābam) | خانهام (khāne-am) | پایم (pāyam) | کتابِ من |
| your (sg) | کتابت (ketābat) | خانهات (khāne-at) | پایت (pāyat) | کتابِ تو |
| his, her | کتابش (ketābash) | خانهاش (khāne-ash) | پایش (pāyash) | کتابِ او |
| our | کتابمان (ketābemān) | خانهمان (khāne-mān) | پایمان (pāyemān) | کتابِ ما |
| your (pl, polite) | کتابتان (ketābetān) | خانهتان (khāne-tān) | پایتان (pāyetān) | کتابِ شما |
| their | کتابشان (ketābeshān) | خانهشان (khāne-shān) | پایشان (pāyeshān) | کتابِ آنها |
After a final ی (vowel i) the singular forms take ا and a half-space, like silent ه: صندلیام (sandali-am), صندلیاش.
Plural nouns and adjectives
The suffix always goes at the very end of the noun phrase:
- کتابهایم (ketābhāyam) — my books
- کتابِ خوبم (ketāb-e khubam) — my good book
- دوستانِ ایرانیاش — his/her Iranian friends
Suffix or ezafe + pronoun?
| Situation | Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| neutral, everyday | suffix | اسمم مریم است. — My name is Maryam. |
| stress or contrast | ezafe + pronoun | این کتابِ من است، نه کتابِ تو. — This is my book, not yours. |
| polite address | either | اسمتان چیست؟ / اسمِ شما چیست؟ — What is your name? |
Colloquial forms
In speech the plural suffixes change their vowel: کتابمون (ketābemun), کتابتون (ketābetun), کتابشون (ketābeshun). After plural ـها: کتابام (ketābām, my books). These spellings belong to chat and dialogue only.
Same ending, different meaning
ـم is also the "I am" ending of "to be" (lesson 2), and after silent ه both are written with ا. خستهام means "I am tired", خانهام can mean "my house" or "I am at home". Context decides.
Watch out as an English speaker
- English puts "my" before the noun. Persian never does: ✗ من کتاب / ✓ کتابم or کتابِ من.
- The suffix goes after the adjective, not on the noun: ✗ کتابمِ خوب / ✓ کتابِ خوبم.
- After silent ه, the plural suffixes need no extra ا: ✗ خانهامان / ✓ خانهمان.
- ـش covers his, her and its, so مادرش is "his mother" or "her mother". Do not add او to show gender; it cannot.
Example dialogue
اسمت چیست؟ — What is your name?
اسمم ساراست. این هم برادرم است. — My name is Sara. And this is my brother.
خانهتان نزدیک است؟ — Is your house close?
بله، خانهمان کنارِ پارک است. — Yes, our house is next to the park.