Dele, Dela, Nele, and Nela: Portuguese Pronouns After Prepositions
Dele and dela often mean ‘his’ or ‘hers’; nele and nela often mean ‘in/on him’ or ‘in/on her.’
Real Life Portuguese · 5 min read · Updated October 14, 2026
The short answer
Dele combines de + ele, and dela combines de + ela. They can mean ‘his,’ ‘hers,’ ‘of him/her,’ or ‘from him/her’ depending on the sentence. The form agrees with the person who owns or is connected to something: o livro dele, a mochila dela.
Combine de with ele or ela for possession and origin
Portuguese also has seu/sua, but those forms can point to different people in a sentence with você, ele, or ela. Dele/dela can make the owner explicit. In Brazilian speech, this is a common way to avoid ambiguity.
Esse é o carro dele.
That’s his car.
A resposta dela foi muito clara.
Her answer was very clear.
Recebi uma mensagem deles ontem.
I received a message from them yesterday.
Combine em with ele or ela for a place or context
Nele combines em + ele; nela combines em + ela. They can refer to something being in, on, or associated with a person or object: pensei nele (I thought about him), coloquei a etiqueta nela (I put the label on it/her). The exact English preposition depends on the verb and context.
Use the same pattern with other pronouns: em + eles becomes neles, and em + elas becomes nelas. After a verb that needs em, the contraction keeps the preposition connected to the pronoun.
Confio nele porque trabalhamos juntos.
I trust him because we work together.
A informação está nela, na segunda página.
The information is in it, on the second page.
Coloquei os documentos neles, nas pastas azuis.
I put the documents in them, in the blue folders.
Put it into practice
Dele/dela combine de with a pronoun and often identify an owner. Nele/nela combine em with a pronoun and refer to a person, place, or thing after a phrase that takes em.
Quick practice
Which Portuguese example matches “I trust him because we work together”?
Choose an answer to check yourself.
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