Using 的 (de)
的 (de) is extremely versatile in Chinese. Pretty much any relationship where one thing belongs to another or is the property of another can be described with 的.

A. Rule
You can think of 的 as being similar to ‘s (apostrophe s) in English. It marks possession in the same way and appears between the two nouns. But it's used very widely to attach any kind of quality or possession.

Structure
[Modifier] + 的 + [Noun]

EXAMPLE
你的 书本。 nǐ de shū běn. Your book.
小娟的 妈妈。 xiǎo juān de mā mā. Xiao Juan’s mother.
他们的 食物。 tā men de shí wù. Their food.

B. Rule
Other than that, 的 is also used to modify things more generally. It attaches attributes to things is by appearing between an adjective and a noun. This simply connects the adjective to the noun in order to describe it.

Structure
[Adjective/ Stative verbs] + 的 + [Noun]

EXAMPLE
我喜欢很友善的人。 wǒ xǐ huān hěn yǒu shàn de rén. l like kind people.
他是个很幽默的人。 tā shì ge hěn yōu mò de rén. He is a very humorous person.
这是一种很甜的奶茶。 zhè shì yī zhǒng hěn tián de nǎi chá. This is a very sweet milk tea.

C. Rule
的 can be used to attach pretty much anything to anything else, you can use it to link entire phrases to things. The phrase then becomes a description of quality.

The phrase is linked to a noun using 的, and becomes a description or attribute of the noun.

Structure
[Clause] + 的 + [Noun]

EXAMPLE
我选的衣服。 wǒ xuǎn de yī fú. Outfit that I chose.
他喜欢的运动。 tā xǐ huān de yùn dòng. The sports he likes.
我认识的老朋友。 wǒ rèn shí de lǎo péng yǒu. Old friends I know.

Possessive Pronouns
Here is the common use of Mandarin equivalent of English possessive pronouns.

SINGULAR
我的 wǒ de		My
你的 nǐ de		Your
他的 tā de		His
她的 tā de		her
自己的 zì jǐ de		Ones

 

PLURAL
我们的 wǒ mén de		Our
你们的 nǐ mén de		Your
他们的 tā mén de		Their
她们的 tā mén de		Their
谁的 shuí de		Whose

How to use 的？
Structure
[Pronoun] + 的 + [Noun]

EXAMPLE
我们 的 书。 wǒ men de shū. Our books.
她 的 钱包。 tā de qián bāo. Her wallet.
自己做 的 笔记。 zì jǐ zuò de bǐ jì. Notes made by yourself.

Asking questions with 的
Structure
[Noun/ Pronoun] + 的 + [Noun]

EXAMPLE
谁 的 钱包？ shuí de qián bāo? Whose wallet?
哪儿 的 医院？ nǎ ér de yī yuan? Which hospital?

Expressing close possession without 的
Sometimes, we do drop the word 的 in some cases, especially when it comes to the relationship which is very close. For example, one-syllable adjectival verb, closely associated noun, and with a close personal relationship.

EXAMPLE
我 妈妈很漂亮。 wǒ mā mā hěn piāo liàng. My mom is pretty.
贵 车 guì chē An expensive car.
韩国 人 hán guó rén Korean