Seu, Sua, Dele, or Dela? Make Portuguese Possession Clear — Practice
A guided practice lesson with English explanations, Brazilian Portuguese examples, and answers you can check. Read the examples, recall the meaning, then say a version of your own.
Match seu or sua to the thing owned
Seu and sua mean ‘your’ or ‘his/her’ depending on context. The possessive agrees with the noun that follows, not with the owner: seu livro (your/his/her book), sua casa (your/his/her house), seus amigos, suas ideias.
With você, seu/sua commonly mean ‘your.’ But if several people are in the sentence, the owner may be unclear. Dele or dela can make that relationship explicit.
| Brazilian Portuguese | English meaning |
|---|---|
| Você trouxe sua carteira? | Did you bring your wallet? |
| Ela encontrou seus documentos. | She found her documents. |
| O senhor esqueceu sua chave? | Did you forget your key? |
Name the owner with dele or dela when needed
Dele (of him/his) and dela (of her/hers) agree with the owner, while the owned noun keeps its own gender: o carro dela, a mochila dele. This is a useful way to remove ambiguity when both você and another person are mentioned.
A simple edit can make a sentence clearer. If it is obvious whose item you mean, seu or sua is concise. If the listener might wonder which person owns it, repeat the owner with dele/dela.
| Brazilian Portuguese | English meaning |
|---|---|
| A Ana falou com o irmão dela. | Ana spoke with her brother. |
| Bruno, este é o seu casaco? | Bruno, is this your coat? |
| O carro dele é azul, e o dela é branco. | His car is blue, and hers is white. |
Remember: Seu/sua agree with the thing owned and can mean ‘your’ or ‘his/her.’ Use dele/dela when naming the owner will make the sentence easier to understand.
Check your understanding
Choose the English meaning of each Portuguese example. Answer before looking back at the tables. These questions check the written examples in this guide; they are not a listening or proficiency test.
Recall the Portuguese, then say it
Read the English prompt and say a Portuguese version before opening the answer. The answer shows the example from the lesson; other natural translations may also work. Compare the meaning and the situation rather than counting a different word as automatically wrong.
Did you bring your wallet?
Show a Portuguese answer
Você trouxe sua carteira?
She found her documents.
Show a Portuguese answer
Ela encontrou seus documentos.
Did you forget your key?
Show a Portuguese answer
O senhor esqueceu sua chave?
Ana spoke with her brother.
Show a Portuguese answer
A Ana falou com o irmão dela.
Bruno, is this your coat?
Show a Portuguese answer
Bruno, este é o seu casaco?
His car is blue, and hers is white.
Show a Portuguese answer
O carro dele é azul, e o dela é branco.
Make the phrase useful to you
Choose one example you could actually use. Say it once from memory, then change one detail that fits your life, such as the person, place, time, or object. Check whether your change also needs a different verb form, article, or adjective ending. If it does, compare it with the pattern in the explanation.
Seu/sua agree with the thing owned and can mean ‘your’ or ‘his/her.’ Use dele/dela when naming the owner will make the sentence easier to understand.
Return to two prompts tomorrow without opening the answers first. If a phrase still feels difficult, shorten it to a useful chunk and build the complete sentence again.
Sources and your next lesson
This I Speak Portuguese practice guide builds on our Seu, Sua, Dele, or Dela? Make Portuguese Possession Clear lesson on Real Life Portuguese, with written recall tasks and additional speaking practice. The explanations and examples are teaching material; the practice questions are exercises, not a transcript of a recording.
To add Brazilian audio to your routine, choose a lesson in the Real Life Portuguese app. The app offers its own lessons and practice; this page does not imply that every example here has an app recording.
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