Ways to say it
| German | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| ihre | /ˈʔiːʁə/ | feminine, plural |
| ihrer | /ˈiːʁɐ/ | masculine |
| ihres | neuter | |
| ihr m or f or | colloquial, neuter, plural | |
| der Ihre | /deːr ˈʔiːʁə/ (word by word) | masculine |
| die Ihre | /diː ˈʔiːʁə/ (stressed, word by word) | feminine |
| das Ihre | /das ˈʔiːʁə/ (word by word) | neuter |
| die Ihren | plural |
The term is used to indicate possession by a female person, meaning 'that which belongs to her'.
Which one should you use?
The form you choose depends on the grammatical gender and number of the noun being possessed. Use ihrer for masculine nouns, ihre for feminine and plural nouns and ihres for neuter nouns. When the pronoun stands alone as a substantive (meaning 'hers'), you use der Ihre for masculine, die Ihre for feminine, das Ihre for neuter and die Ihren for plural.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The form ihr m or f or is a colloquial way to refer to the neuter or plural forms.
How does it change in a sentence?
The word changes based on the gender (masculine, feminine or neuter) and number (singular or plural) of the object possessed. For substantive use where the word acts as a noun, the forms include der Ihre (masculine), die Ihre (feminine), das Ihre (neuter) and die Ihren (plural).
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈʔiːʁə/
Did you know?
- The word ihr is a linguistic 'chameleon' because it can simultaneously mean 'her', 'their', and 'your' (formal) depending on the context and grammatical case.
- In formal German, the capitalized version Ihre is used to mean 'your' rather than 'hers', regardless of the gender of the person spoken to.
- The possessive 'hers' is a distant relative of the English word 'ye', as both stem from the same Proto-Germanic roots used for addressing people.
Examples in context
- Das ist nicht ihre.This is not hers.This sentence shows how to use ihre in a negative statement.Tatoeba #10063567 by wolfgangth, translation #3226052 by Luornu
- Sie gibt dir ihres.She'll give you hers.This sentence demonstrates the use of ihre in a sentence about giving.Tatoeba #13413725 by grbwsk, translation #13411317 by frpzzd
- Das sind ihre Fotos.Those photos are hers.This sentence shows how ihre functions as a possessive determiner for a plural noun.Tatoeba #2055936 by Sirio60, translation #67012 by CK
- Sie hat ihren eigenen Stil.She has her own style.
- Das sind ihre Stifte.Those are her pens.
- Das ist ihr Buch.That is her book.
- 42 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lukas and Hannah are looking for a lost bag in the living room.
- LukasIst diese Tasche etwa deine?Is this bag perhaps yours?
- HannahNein, ich glaube, das ist ihre.No, I think that is hers.
- LukasWo ist dann deine Tasche?Where is your bag then?
- HannahMeine steht dort an der Tür.Mine is standing there by the door.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hers” translations and entries ihre, ihrer, ihres, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (der, ihre, die, das) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ihr, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
