Use _ons_ (our) before a singular het-word, which is a noun that takes _het_ for "the": _ons huis_. Use _onze_ before a de-word and before every plural (more than one): _onze auto_, _onze huizen_. In short, _ons_ and _onze_ copy the split between _het_ and _de_.
The pattern
_Ons_ goes where _het_ goes, and _onze_ goes where _de_ goes. Every plural takes _de_, so every plural takes _onze_.
- Singular het-word: _het huis_, so _ons huis_.
- Singular de-word: _de auto_, so _onze auto_.
- Any plural: _de huizen_, _de auto's_, so _onze huizen_, _onze auto's_.
- Singular diminutives (the small form of a noun, such as _hondje_ or _meisje_) are het-words: _ons hondje_, _ons meisje_. Their plurals take _onze_: _onze hondjes_.
- When it means "us" on its own, it is always _ons_: _Ze bellen ons morgen._
Examples
| Ons huis heeft een kleine tuin. | Our house has a small garden. |
|---|---|
| Onze straat is erg rustig. | Our street is very quiet. |
| Ons kind is vandaag ziek, dus we bellen de huisarts. | Our child is ill today, so we are calling the GP. |
| Onze kinderen fietsen elke dag naar school. | Our children cycle to school every day. |
| We hebben ons appartement zelf geschilderd. | We painted our flat ourselves. |
| Onze buurvrouw Yara heeft ons pakket aangenomen. | Our neighbour Yara took in our parcel. |
| Priya is nieuw in ons team. | Priya is new in our team. |
| Daan heeft onze hond uitgelaten. | Daan walked our dog. |
| Ons hondje slaapt in de keuken. | Our little dog sleeps in the kitchen. |
| Onze trein heeft weer vertraging. | Our train is delayed again. |
Why it works this way
Dutch nouns come in two groups, de-words and het-words (see [De or het](#/lesson/de-and-het)). All plurals join the de group. _Ons_ simply follows that split, so the test is easy: say the noun with its article first. _Het pakket_, so _ons pakket_. _De trein_, so _onze trein_.
The extra _-e_ on _onze_ is a familiar Dutch habit. You see the same pattern after _een_: _een klein huis_ against _een kleine auto_, and _kleine huizen_ in the plural. The singular het-word is the odd one out, without the _-e_.
The good news: _ons_ is the only possessive that changes. _Mijn_, _jouw_, _zijn_, _haar_, _jullie_ and _hun_ stay the same before every noun (see [Possessive pronouns](#/lesson/possessive-pronouns)).
English has one word, "our", so the risk is forgetting to choose at all. German speakers have "unser" and "unsere", but German gender often differs from Dutch: German says "das Auto", Dutch says _de auto_. Spanish speakers can set masculine and feminine aside here. Dutch only asks de or het, which is why a girl is _ons meisje_.
Remember: say the noun with _het_ or _de_ first, then swap. _Het_ becomes _ons_, _de_ becomes _onze_.
If you are unsure whether a noun is de or het, _onze_ is the safer guess, because most Dutch nouns are de-words. That is a bet, not a rule, so check the word when you can ([How to actually learn de and het](#/lesson/learning-de-het)). To say "ours" without a noun, see [Mine and yours](#/lesson/mine-and-yours).
Watch out
- Not: _onze huis_ Say: _ons huis_ (it is _het huis_, so no _-e_)
- Not: _ons kinderen_ Say: _onze kinderen_ (every plural takes _onze_, even though it is _het kind_)
- Not: _ons auto_ Say: _onze auto_ (_auto_ is a de-word in Dutch, whatever German says)
- Not: _ons nieuw huis_ Say: _ons nieuwe huis_ (after _ons_, the adjective gets _-e_)
- Not: _Ze helpen onze_ Say: _Ze helpen ons_ (meaning "us", it is always _ons_)
Quick check
- Fill in _ons_ or _onze_: _Dit is ... buurman, Joris._
- Fill in _ons_ or _onze_: _... bedrijf heeft een nieuw kantoor._
- Choose: _Gisteren zijn (ons / onze) vrienden op bezoek geweest._
- Fix the sentence: _Onze meisje is vandaag jarig._
Answers
- _onze_ (it is _de buurman_)
- _Ons_ (it is _het bedrijf_)
- _onze_ (_vrienden_ is plural)
- _Ons meisje is vandaag jarig._ (singular diminutives are het-words: _het meisje_)
Use it today
Write three sentences about your home for a new neighbour: one with _ons huis_ or _ons appartement_, one with _onze straat_, and one with a plural such as _onze buren_. Say each noun with _de_ or _het_ first, then swap in _ons_ or _onze_.