Unit 4 — Grammar Focus

Possessive Pronouns

In Nepali, possession is often shown with the genitive endings –को, –की, and –का (–ko, –kī, –kā). These endings can mean “my,” “your,” “his,” “her,” “their,” or “of,” depending on the sentence.

A very important point is that –को / –की / –का (–ko / –kī / –kā) agree with the thing being owned, not with the owner.

For example:

तपाईंको किताब
tapāī̃ko kitāb
your book

तपाईंकी आमा
tapāī̃kī āmā
your mother

तपाईंका किताबहरू
tapāī̃kā kitābharū
your books

In these examples, the ending changes because the possessed noun changes: किताब (kitāb), आमा (āmā), and किताबहरू (kitābharū).

There are three common ways to form possessive pronouns in Nepali:

1. Some pronouns stay the same and directly take –को / –की / –का (–ko / –kī / –kā).
2. Some pronouns have special possessive forms.
3. Some pronouns change to a different stem before taking –को / –की / –का (–ko / –kī / –kā).

1. Direct-Case Pronouns

Some Nepali pronouns form possessives in the simplest way. The pronoun stays the same, and –को / –की / –का (–ko / –kī / –kā) is added directly.

For example:

तपाईं
tapāī̃
you, polite

तपाईंको
tapāī̃ko
your

उहाँ
uhā̃
he/she, respectful

उहाँको
uhā̃ko
his/her, respectful

Remember: the ending agrees with the noun being possessed, not with the pronoun.

Table 4.4.1 – Possessive pronouns: direct-case forms (add –को/–की/–का)

Try It Now

Read the phrases aloud.

तपाईंको किताब
tapāī̃ko kitāb
your book

तपाईंकी आमा
tapāī̃kī āmā
your mother

तपाईंका साथीहरू
tapāī̃kā sāthīharū
your friends

उहाँको घर
uhā̃ko ghar
his/her house, respectful

उहाँकी छोरी
uhā̃kī chorī
his/her daughter, respectful

2. Special Possessive Forms

Some Nepali pronouns do not form possession by simply adding –को / –की / –का (–ko / –kī / –kā). Instead, they have special possessive forms that must be learned as whole words.

For example:

म
ma
I

मेरो
mero
my

हामी
hāmī
we

हाम्रो
hāmro
our

तिमी
timī
you, familiar

तिम्रो
timro
your, familiar

These forms are very common in everyday Nepali, so it is best to memorize them as core vocabulary.

Table 4.4.2 – Possessive pronouns: Special possessive forms (fixed forms)

Simple Rule

Do not say मको (mako) for “my.”

Use मेरो (mero).

Do not say हामीको (hāmīko) for “our.”

Use हाम्रो (hāmro).

Try It Now

Complete the phrases.

मेरो किताब
mero kitāb
my book

मेरी आमा
merī āmā
my mother

मेरा साथीहरू
merā sāthīharū
my friends

हाम्रो घर
hāmro ghar
our house

तिम्रो झोला
timro jholā
your bag, familiar

3. Oblique-Stem Pronouns

Some pronouns change form before adding –को / –की / –का (–ko / –kī / –kā). This changed form is called an oblique stem.

This pattern is common with demonstratives and third-person forms.

For example:

यो
yo
this

यसको / यस्को
yasko
of this / this one’s

त्यो
tyo
that

त्यसको / त्यस्को
tyasko
of that / that one’s

As always, the ending agrees with the noun being possessed.

Table 4.4.3 – Possessive pronouns: oblique stems + –को/–की/–का

Learner Tip

For beginners, focus first on recognizing these common forms:

यस्को
yasko
this one’s / of this

त्यस्को
tyasko
that one’s / of that

कस्को
kasko
whose

Try It Now

Read the questions and answers.

यो कस्को किताब हो?
yo kasko kitāb ho?
Whose book is this?

यो यस्को किताब हो।
yo yasko kitāb ho.
This is this person’s book.

त्यो कस्को झोला हो?
tyo kasko jholā ho?
Whose bag is that?

त्यो त्यस्को झोला हो।
tyo tyasko jholā ho.
That is that person’s bag.

Key Reminder

The possessive ending agrees with the thing being owned, not with the owner.

मेरो किताब
mero kitāb
my book

मेरी आमा
merī āmā
my mother

मेरा किताबहरू
merā kitābharū
my books

The owner is the same: म (ma), “I.”

The ending changes because the possessed noun changes.

Ownership with –को, –की, –का

In Nepali, ownership is expressed with –को / –की / –का (–ko / –kī / –kā). These endings are similar to English “’s” or “of.”

For example:

रामको किताब
rāmko kitāb
Ram’s book

सीताको घर
sītāko ghar
Sita’s house

तपाईंको झोला
tapāī̃ko jholā
your bag

The genitive ending attaches to the owner and links the owner to the thing being owned.

Agreement of –को / –की / –का

The form of the ending depends on the thing being owned.

Simple Rule

Use –को (–ko) with most singular general nouns.

Use –की (–kī) with singular female persons.

Use –का (–kā) with plural nouns.

Table 4.4.4 – –को/–की/–का agreement (possessed noun controls)

Try It Now

Choose the correct form.

मेरो किताब
mero kitāb
my book

मेरी बहिनी
merī bahinī
my younger sister

मेरा साथीहरू
merā sāthīharū
my friends

तपाईंको घर
tapāī̃ko ghar
your house

तपाईंकी आमा
tapāī̃kī āmā
your mother

तपाईंका किताबहरू
tapāī̃kā kitābharū
your books

Possession vs. Ownership in Nepali

In Nepali, “having something” and “something belonging to someone” are expressed with two different sentence patterns.

Use छ / छैन (cha / chaina) when you want to say that someone has or does not have something.

Use हो / होइन (ho / hoina) when you want to say that something belongs to someone.

Possession: Someone Has Something

Use this pattern when you want to say what someone has.

Structure:

Person + –को / –की / –का + thing + छ / छन् / छैन
Person + –ko / –kī / –kā + thing + cha / chan / chaina

For example:

मेरो किताब छ।
mero kitāb cha.
I have a book.

तपाईंको झोला छ।
tapāī̃ko jholā cha.
You have a bag.

मेरो किताब छैन।
mero kitāb chaina.
I do not have a book.

In this pattern, the sentence focuses on what exists in relation to a person.

Table 4.4.5 – “Have / do not have”: possession with छ/छन्, छैन

Ownership: Something Belongs to Someone

Use this pattern when you want to identify who something belongs to.

Structure:

Thing + person + –को / –की / –का + हो / होइन
Thing + person + –ko / –kī / –kā + ho / hoina

For example:

यो किताब मेरो हो।
yo kitāb mero ho.
This book is mine.

त्यो झोला तपाईंको हो।
tyo jholā tapāī̃ko ho.
That bag is yours.

यो किताब मेरो होइन।
yo kitāb mero hoina.
This book is not mine.

In this pattern, the sentence identifies ownership. It tells us whose something is.

Table 4.4.6 – “Belongs to”: ownership with हो/होइन

Common Mistake

Do not confuse these two patterns.

मेरो किताब छ।
mero kitāb cha.
I have a book.

यो किताब मेरो हो।
yo kitāb mero ho.
This book is mine.

The first sentence talks about possession.

The second sentence identifies ownership.

Chains of Ownership

Nepali can show more than one level of ownership by using several genitive phrases together.

For example:

रामको भाइको किताब
rāmko bhāiko kitāb
Ram’s younger brother’s book

सीताको आमाको घर
sītāko āmāko ghar
Sita’s mother’s house

Each –को (–ko) phrase connects to the noun that follows it.

Table 4.4.7 – Chains of ownership (stacked –को phrases)

Learner Tip

Short ownership chains are common in Nepali.

Very long ownership chains can become hard to understand. In natural speech, speakers often split them into two shorter sentences.

For example:

यो रामको भाइ हो।
yo rāmko bhāi ho.
This is Ram’s younger brother.

यो उहाँको किताब हो।
yo uhā̃ko kitāb ho.
This is his book.

Asking “Whose?” Questions

To ask “whose?” in Nepali, use:

कस्को
kasko

कस्की
kaskī

कस्का
kaskā

These forms work like –को / –की / –का (–ko / –kī / –kā). They agree with the noun being possessed.

Simple Rule

कस्को (kasko) → most singular general nouns

कस्की (kaskī) → singular female persons

कस्का (kaskā) → plural nouns

For example:

यो कस्को किताब हो?
yo kasko kitāb ho?
Whose book is this?

उहाँ कस्की आमा हुनुहुन्छ?
uhā̃ kaskī āmā hunuhuncha?
Whose mother is she?

यी कस्का किताबहरू हुन्?
yī kaskā kitābharū hun?
Whose books are these?

Table 4.4.8 – Choosing कस्को/कस्की/कस्का by owned noun type

Try It Now

Ask and answer with a partner.

A: यो कस्को किताब हो?
yo kasko kitāb ho?
Whose book is this?

B: यो मेरो किताब हो।
yo mero kitāb ho.
This is my book.

A: त्यो कस्को झोला हो?
tyo kasko jholā ho?
Whose bag is that?

B: त्यो तपाईंको झोला हो।
tyo tapāī̃ko jholā ho.
That is your bag.

A: यी कस्का किताबहरू हुन्?
yī kaskā kitābharū hun?
Whose books are these?

B: यी हाम्रा किताबहरू हुन्।
yī hāmrā kitābharū hun.
These are our books.

Can You Do This Now?

At the end of this section, you should be able to:

• recognize possessive forms such as मेरो, तपाईंको, उहाँको, यस्को, and त्यस्को
• use –को, –की, and –का with the correct type of noun
• understand that the possessive ending agrees with the thing being owned
• ask “whose?” questions with कस्को, कस्की, and कस्का
• say simple ownership sentences such as यो किताब मेरो हो
• say simple possession sentences such as मेरो किताब छ