Chinese Grammar: Lesson: Expressing possession

Let's talk about the main possession marker in Chinese: 的. 的 marks possession in Chinese and is simple to use.

Structure

It works like this:

Noun 1 的 Noun 2
Noun 2 belongs to Noun 1.

Example

我 的 书。
My book.

Expressing close possession

When talking about close or obvious possession, 的 can be omitted.

Structure

You can particularly omit using 的 when talking about personal relationships such as family and close friends.

Example

我 妈妈。
My mom.

我 妈妈 的 朋友。
My mom’s friend.

我 妈妈 的 书。
My mom's book.

的 expresses possession whether "Noun 1" is a person, place, a thing, or a pronoun ("he," "she,") or even a complete clause. Nifty, don’t you think?