Le tien
/lə tjɛ̃/
The English phrase 'yours' is translated into French as Le tien.
Le tien is a possessive pronoun used to mean 'yours'.
Meaning: sincerely (pron)
Which one should you use?
When speaking to a single person informally using tu, you should use le tien or la tienne. In contrast, if you are speaking to someone formally or to a group of people, you should use le vôtre or la vôtre.
How does it change in a sentence?
The form of the pronoun agrees in gender with the object being referred to, appearing as le tien for masculine objects and la tienne for feminine objects.
How do you pronounce it?
/lə tjɛ̃/
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often confuse the possessive adjective ton (your) with the possessive pronoun le tien (yours). While ton must always precede a noun, le tien stands alone as a noun substitute.
Did you know?
- In a heated argument, using le tien instead of le vôtre can be seen as an intentional act of disrespect, essentially 'dropping' the formal social barrier.
- In French, the gender of le tien or la tienne is determined entirely by the object being possessed, not by the person who owns it.
- The word tien shares a common ancestor with the Latin word 'tuum', which is why it sounds so similar to many other Romance language possessives like the Spanish 'tuyo'.
Examples in context
- Est-ce le tien ?Is it yours?This example shows how to use Le tien in a question.Tatoeba #2109449 by sacredceltic, translation #42344 by CK
- Le tien était mieux.Yours was better.This example uses Le tien to compare two things.Tatoeba #6463350 by Aiji, translation #2255474 by CK
- Montre-moi le tien !Show me yours!This example uses Le tien in an imperative sentence.Tatoeba #7498994 by Micsmithel, translation #871810 by sundown
- Je vous présente mon livre, et voici le vôtreI present to you my book, and here is yours
- Voici votre voiture, elle est à vousHere is your car, it is yours
- Mon stylo est bleu, mais le tien est rougeMy pen is blue, but yours is red
- Voici votre cadeau, le vôtre est vraiment très spécialHere is your gift, yours is truly very special
- Voici votre stylo, et voilà le mien.Here is your pen, and this is mine.
- J'espère que vous aimez votre repas, et moi j'apprécie le mien.I hope you enjoy your meal, and I am enjoying mine.
- 75 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lucas and Chloé are comparing their new phones.
- LucasMon téléphone est rapide, et le tien ?My phone is fast, and yours?
- ChloéLe tien a un meilleur écran que le mien.Yours has a better screen than mine.
- LucasJe préfère le tien pour les photos.I prefer yours for photos.
- ChloéC'est vrai, le tien est quand même plus léger.That's true, yours is still lighter.
Sources
- Pronunciation from the Wiktionary entry le tien.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries Le, le, tien, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
