no es mío
/no es mio/from spelling rules
The English phrase "not mine" is translated into Spanish as no es mío.
This phrase is used to state that something does not belong to the speaker. While no es mío is the standard way to express this, you might use the more formal No me pertenece (it does not belong to me) or the legalistic No es de mi propiedad (it is not my property) in official settings. In casual conversation, you might also say No es mío/a, es de otra persona to clarify that an item belongs to someone else.
Which one should you use?
There is a distinction between using the phrase as a possessive pronoun and a possessive adjective. Use no es mío to function as a possessive pronoun (meaning "it is not mine"). However, if you want to say "it is not my [noun]", you use the possessive adjective no es mi followed directly by the noun.
How does it change in a sentence?
The form of the phrase must change to match the gender and number of the noun it refers to. Use no es mío for masculine nouns and no es mía for feminine nouns. If you are discussing multiple objects, use no son míos for masculine plural objects and no son mías for feminine plural objects.
Did you know?
- The word es is a cognate with the Sanskrit word अस्ति, showing a prehistoric connection between Spanish and ancient Indian languages.
- While no me pertenece is a grammatically correct way to say 'it does not belong to me', using it in casual conversation can make you sound like a suspicious detective or a lawyer.
- In Spanish, the gendered ending of mío or mía depends entirely on the object being discussed, not on whether the speaker is male or female.
Examples in context
- Este coche no es mío.This car is not mine.This sentence shows how to use no es mío to say a car is not yours.Tatoeba #3377788 by Shishir, translation #3378515 by hoffmania
- El libro que trajiste no es mío.The book you brought is not mine.This sentence uses no es mío to clarify that a specific book does not belong to you.Tatoeba #1687699 by marcelostockle, translation #1687660 by CM
- Esto es un martillo. No es mío, me los prestó un amigo.This is a hammer. It's not mine, I borrowed it from a friend.This sentence demonstrates the use of no es mío when explaining that an object was borrowed from a friend.Tatoeba #1941337 by hayastan, translation #1746558 by Djef_Messaoudi
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Elena and Mateo are looking for a lost phone in the living room.
- Elena¿Es este tu teléfono?Is this your phone?
- MateoNo, no es mío.No, it is not mine.
- ElenaEntonces, ¿de quién es?Then, whose is it?
- MateoNo tengo idea.I have no idea.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries es, mío, no, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
