German Articles!

The Basics

• All German Nouns are Capitalized!

• There are 3 articles in German.

• These articles are:– 1. der– 2. die– 3. das

• When you learn a German Noun, you must also learn the article.

• der Hund = the dog• die Katze = the cat• das Kind = the child

• die Eltern = the parents– “The parents” is plural.

DER

• Der is considered masculine.

• Here are some helpful hints to know if the article of the Noun is masculine or not.

• The following are always masculine.

DER

• Days, Months, Seasons:– Montag, Juli, Sommer

• Points of the Compass, Map locations and Winds:– Nordwest, Föhn

• Precipitation:– Regen, Schnee, Nebel

DER

• Names of Cars and Trains:– VW, ICE, Mercedes

• Words ending in -ismus:– Journalismus, Kommunismus, Synchronismus– (-ismus in German = -ism in English)

• Words ending in -ner:– Rentner, Schaffner, Zöllner

DER

• The basic Atmospheric elements that end in “-stoff.”

– Sauerstoff - Oxygen

– Stickstoff - Nitrogen

DER

• The following are usually masculine.

• Agents (people who do something), most Occupations and Nationalities:

– Architekt, Arzt, Deutsche, Student

DER

• Nouns ending in -er (when referring to people):– Fahrer, Verkäufer

• Names of Alcoholic Drinks:– Wein, Wodka

• Names of Mountains and Lakes:– Berg, See

DER

• Most Rivers outside of Europe:– Amazonas, Kongo, Mississippi

• Most Nouns ending in -ich, -ling and -ist:– Rettich, Schädling, Pazifist

DIE

• Die is considered feminine.

• Here are some helpful hints to know if the article of the Noun is feminine or not.

• The following are always feminine.

DIE

• Nouns ending in the following suffixes -heit, -keit, -tät, -ung and -schaft:– Freiheit, Schnelligkeit, Universität, Zeitung,

Freundschaft

• Nouns ending in -ie:– Drogerie, Geographie, Industrie– (-ie in German = -y in English)

DIE

• Names of Aircraft, Ships and Motorbikes:– Boeing 747, Titanic, BMW– (BMW is for the Motorcycle only)– (In English, ships are often referred to as “she.”)

• Nouns ending in -ik:– Grammatik, Grafik, Klinik, Musik, Panik, Physik

DIE

• Borrowed (Foreign) Nouns ending in -ade, -age, -anz, -enz, -ette, -ine, -ion and -tur:– Parade, Blamage (shame), Distanz, Frequenz,

Serviette, Nation, Konjunktur (economic trend)

• Cardinal Numbers:– Eins, Drei

DIE

• The following are usually feminine.

• Nouns ending in -in:– Amerikanerin, Studentin– (usually pertain to female people, occupations

nationalities)

• Most Nouns ending in -e:– Ecke, Ente, Grenze, Pistole

DIE

• Most Nouns ending in -ei:– Partei

• Most types of Flowers and Trees:– Birke, Chrysanthememe, Eiche, Rose

• Borrowed (Foreign) Nouns ending in -isse, -itis and -ive:– Hornisse, Initiative

DAS

• Das is considered neuter.

• Here are some helpful hints to know if the article of the Noun is neuter or not.

• The following are always neuter.

DAS

• Nouns ending in -chen or -lein:– Fräulein, Kannichen, Mädchen

• Infinitives used as nouns (Gerunds):– Essen, Schreiben

• Almost all of the 112 known Chemical Elements:– Aluminium, Zink, Zirkonium

DAS

• Names of Hotels, Cafes and Theaters:– Hotel, Café, Kino

• Names of Colors used as Nouns:– Blau, Rot

DAS

• The following are usually neuter.

• Geographic place names (Towns, Countries, Continents):– Berlin, Deutschland, Brasilien, Afrika

• Young Animals and People:– Baby, Kücken

DAS

• Most Metals:– Aluminium, Kupfer

• Nouns ending in -o:– Auto, Büro, Kasino, Konto, Radio, Veto, Video

• Fractions:– Viertel, Drittel

DAS

• Most Nouns starting with -Ge:– Geschirr, Geschlecht, Gesetz

• Most Borrowed (Foreign) Nouns ending in -ment:– Ressentiment, Supplement

DAS

• Most Nouns ending in -nis:– Versäumnis

• Most Nouns ending in -tum or -um:– Christentum, Königtum

Plural Die

• Any Noun in German that is Plural uses the article die.

• der Stuhl: die Stühle• die Dame: die Damen• das Jahr: die Jahre

• No matter the original article, if the Noun is plural, the article will always be die.

Sources

• www.german.about.com