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"My" is a possessive adjective. It goes before objects and does not change with number as the Spanish equivalent does, which are: "Mi" (singular) or "Mis" (plural):
My sister lives near here. Mi hermana vive por aquí.
My brothers are all older than I am. Mis hermanos son todos mayores que yo.
As mentioned in another lesson, Spanish does not usually use the possessive adjective when referring to parts of the body:
Me duelen los ojos. (the
eyes are hurting me) My eyes hurt.
Tengo agujetas en las piernas. My legs are stiff.
The Spanish also use mío/mía/míos/mías as possessive adjectives with very little or no difference in meaning from mi/mis:
Amor mío / Mi amor. Te necesito. My love. I need you.
Ellas son buenas amigas mías.
Or,
Ellas son mis buenas amigas. They're good friends of mine.
or,
They're my good friends.
Though sometimes the expression is idiomatic and cannot be changed:
¡Eso es asunto mío y no tiene nada que ver contigo! (not: mi asunto) That's my business and it's got nothing to do with you!
On the left I've listed some idiomatic English "my" expressions with the Spanish translation underneath. While on the right are some Spanish "mi" and "mis" expressions with the English translation below:
English expressions
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Spanish expressions
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Can I borrow your ruler? ¿Me prestas tu regla?
Be my guest. Adelante. / Claro que sí.
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Mira, es de mi puño y letra. Look, that's my handwriting.
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Listen, I never said that about your grandmother. Cross my heart (and hope to die). Oye, nunca he dicho eso acerca de tu abuela. ¡Te lo juro!
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En mi fuero interno sabía que decías la verdad. In my heart of hearts I knew you were telling the truth.
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Please, don't tell anybody. Ok?
No se lo digas a nadie ¿vale?
- My lips are sealed! ¡Prometo no decir nada!
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Me han quitado el coche. Me lo quitaron en mis propias narices. My car's been stolen.
They took it from right under my very nose.
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John, you've been stealing my biscuits
again. John, has vuelto a robar mis galletas.
I haven't touched your biscuits! ¡No he tocado tus galletas!
So, who opened this packet? ¿Entonces,
quién ha abierto este paquete?
You've got me there! It
was me. Ya me has pillado. He sido yo.
I rest my case. A las pruebas me remito.
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Jane: Mi vida, ¿cenamos en un sitio romántico esta noche? Jane: Darling, shall we dine out tonight?
Tarzán: Pues, el Revolcadero de los Jabalíes es muy bonito. ¿Reservo un tronco? Tarzan: Well, the Wild Boar Wallow is very nice. Shall I reserve a tree trunk?
Jane: Mmm... Quedamos en casa. Jane: Eh... Let's stay in.
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