Difference Between My and Mine
My and mine can be easily confused words since both of them indicate possession. Both of these terms are also related to the first person singular pronoun, ‘I’. The main difference between my and mine is that my is a possessive adjective whereas mine is a possessive pronoun. Although both words indicate possession or ownership, their grammatical functions differ according to the different parts of the speech they fall into. Therefore, let us look at the difference between my and mine in this article.
My – Meaning and Usage
My is a possessive adjective. A possessive adjective is an adjective that indicates ownership of a noun, and there are seven possessive adjectives in English; they are my, your, his, her, its, our, and their. My is related to the personal pronoun, I. The main function of a possessive adjective is to indicate the possession of the noun that follows it. In other words, my describes that something belongs to the first person singular person. However, the noun that follows the adjective can be either singular or plural. When you want to say that something belongs to you, you can use this possessive adjective.
I can’t find my books.
My parents forbade me to go out of the house.
My decision to move abroad changed the course of my life.
Everybody was impressed with my cooking skills.
My house is situated on a top of a hill.
Mine – Meaning and Usage
Mine is a possessive pronoun. It is always used with the first person singular pronoun, I. The main function of this pronoun is to replace a noun or a noun phrase that indicates possession and to avoid repetition. It is important to note that this possessive pronoun can be used to replace above explained possessive adjective. For example,
Your daughter is better-behaved than my daughter. → Your daughter is better behaved than mine.
Alice’s house is smaller than my house. → Alice’s house is smaller than mine.
Can I use your car? My phone is not working. → Can I use your car? Mine is not working.
In the above examples, you’ll note that this possessive pronoun can be used as a subject as well as an object. Given below are some more examples of this possessive pronoun.
Can I borrow your pen? I lost mine.
Your children are more intelligent than mine.
The car she is using is actually mine.
Take out your key. I forgot mine at home.
Difference Between My and Mine
Category
My is a possessive adjective.
Mine is a possessive pronoun.
Function
My indicates the possession of the noun that follows it.
Mine replaces noun phrases to avoid repetition.
Noun
My is immediately followed by a noun.
Mine is not followed by a noun.
Replacement
My and the noun that follows it can replace mine.
Mine can replace my and the noun that follows it.
