Thread: A russian needs some help with English

Tom entered the room and saw his brother playing with his toys.
Question: does this sentence mean "Том вошел в комнату и увидел своего брата, играющего со своими (not Tom's) игрушками" or "...c его (Tom's)..."? If the first meaning is right, as I think, then how can I express the second one?
Thanks in advise.

This is an ambiguous sentence with respect to the (his) pronouns. But it is probably trying to convey that Tom entered the room and saw Tom's (his) brother playing with Tom's (his) toys. Or, it could mean Tom entered the room and saw Tom's (his) brother playing with Tom's brother's (his) toys.

Then, how can I avoid this ambiguous expression?

If you want to be absolutely clear they are Tom's toys, repeat the name: Tom entered the room and saw his brother playing with Tom's toys.

If you said, "Tom entered his room and saw his brother playing with his toys", the reader would infer that the toys belonged to Tom, since they were in Tom's room.