Lesson 28: 의

In this lesson, you will learn how to use the possessive particle 의. By the end of this lesson, you will be able to say things like “Annie‘s book”, “My jacket”, Today‘s weather”, etc.

Lesson 28: 의

의 is a possessive particle and is used to show the possessive relationship between two nouns. In English, the possessive form is realized by an apostrophe followed by an ‘s’ (‘s). 의 is attached to the noun that is the ‘possessor’. Let’s look at some examples.

애니의 책 = Annie’s book
저의 이름 = my name
내일의 날씨 = tomorrow’s weather

Things To Note:

In everyday conversations, the particle 의 is often pronounced as [에]. 의 is also often dropped because the meaning is already clear. For example;

마이클의 집 = 마이클 집  = Michael’s house
오늘의 뉴스 = 오늘 뉴스  = today’s news / news of the day

Another thing to note is that 의 combines with the pronouns 저 (I/me – polite) and 나 (I/me – casual/non-polite) to form 제 (저의) and 내 (나의). For example;

저의 이름 = 제 이름 = my name
나의 친구 = 내 친구 = my friend

Example Sentences

이름이 뭐예요?  = What’s your name?
제 이름은 애니예요.  = My name is Annie.

이거는 누구의 책이에요?  = Whose book is this?
애니 씨의 책이에요.  = It’s Annie’s book.

어디에 가요?  = Where are you going?
마이클 씨의 집에 가요.  = I am going to Michael’s house.

누구하고 서울에 갈 거예요?  = Who are you going to Seoul with?
제 친구하고 갈 거예요.  = I’m going with my friend.