Definitions

our

[ou^uhr, ou-er, ahr] / aʊər, ˈaʊ ər, ɑr /

PRONOUN

a possessive form used as an attributive adjective

Synonyms

STRONG

her hir his its my their vis xyr your zir

Frequently Asked Questions

What can I say instead of our?

We don’t traditionally think of our as having synonyms, but there are several situations in which it can replace—or be replaced with—another term. our own The phrase our own is sometimes used as a more emphatic way of saying our, as in I can’t believe we were betrayed by our own family members. ours Sometimes you can reword what you’re saying to use ours instead of our. For example, instead of saying This is our popcorn, you could say This popcorn is ours. us Sometimes, us is used where the word our could also be used, such as in sentences like this: Did you hear about us getting lost? Historically, it was considered more proper to use our before gerunds (e.g., getting in the preceding example), but using us is now more common and often sounds more natural. other possessives Instead of saying things like This is my house and her house, we usually use the plural form our, as in This is our house. Sometimes, though, it makes more sense to separate who owns what by using separate possessive words. For example, instead of saying These are our vehicles, you could say This is my car and this is her truck.

Is our a pronoun or an adjective?

Our is the possessive form of the plural personal pronoun we. It’s often considered a possessive pronoun, but it functions as a possessive adjective (also called a possessive determiner). That’s a lot of labels for such a common word, but they essentially mean this: our shows possession by functioning as an adjective and modifying a noun (it never functions as a noun itself). The same thing can be said about my (the possessive form of the pronoun I). (The forms mine and ours stand alone as nouns, and never accompany another noun as modifiers.) In contrast, the word his can be used as both a possessive pronoun (as in That jacket is his) or a possessive adjective (as in That is his jacket). Possessive words like our commonly indicate possession or ownership, but they can also indicate origin or other qualities. Our is used along with first person pronouns (like I, me, we, and us), which refer to the speaker or writer themselves. Other first person possessive forms include my, mine, and ours. In contrast, second person pronouns (like you and yourself) are used to address the person being spoken to or reading. Possessive forms of these include your and yours. Third person pronouns (like he, she, they, him, her, and them) refer to anyone other than the person doing the addressing or the ones being addressed. Third person possessive forms include his, her, hers, their, and theirs.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Our security," Carson said, "is based on many considerations -our military posture, our overall economic and political strength, and our relationships with our friends and neighbors with whom we share a common danger.

From Time Magazine Archive

In the same way we replace the Fr. -our, -eur by -er, as in Turner, Fr. tourneur, Ginner, Jenner for Jenoure.

From The Romance of Names by Weekley, Ernest

In certain abstract nouns from L. -or, Fr. -eur is still represented by -our, as colour, labour, honour, and in a few cases directly retained, as in grandeur.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) by Various

Another large group of hovering accents is that formed by French words with such terminations as -our, -ance, -ace, -age, -ant, -ess.

From English Verse Specimens Illustrating its Principles and History by Alden, Raymond MacDonald

See -ther, and cf. -or, -our, -er. -tor-y, -sor-y, noun suffix, denoting place, as dormitory. -tude forms abstract nouns, as gratitude.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) by Various

our

Frequently Asked Questions

Example Sentences

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