In this article I will explain the dreaded subject of declension (Deklination der Nomen) and the four German grammatical cases (Kasus). Feared by many, but once you understand the rules, it will be much less intimidating.
The term declension in the German language describes the inflection (change) of nouns, articles, pronouns and adjectives according to the four cases: nominative, accusative, dative and genitive. You will also have to consider the grammatical gender (Genus) and whether a noun is singular or plural (Numerus). The grammatical cases help you to identify the function of a noun within a sentence.
In the scope of this article I will focus on the declension of nouns and articles, as this is the foundation of all further learning. But first I will explain what the grammatical cases are and how they are used.
Understanding the Four German Cases (Kasus):
Each grammatical case determines a specific function within a sentence. These functions include the subject (nominative), the direct object (accusative), the indirect object (dative), and the attributive use (genitive).
Let's look at a simple simple sentence:
| Der Mann gibt | dem Hund | des Nachbarn | einen Knochen. |
| The man gives | the dog | of the neighbor | a bone. |
| subject → nominative | indirect object → dative | attributive use → genitive | direct object → accusative |
It can also help to use questions to determine the grammatical case.
Nominative
indicates the subject of the sentence, the one that performs the action. It is also used after the verbs: sein, bleiben, werden. It is the basic form you find in the dictionary.
Ask this Question to determine the nominative case:
| Wer gibt dem Hund des Nachbarn einen Knochen? Der Mann | Who gives the dog of the neighbor a bone? The man |
Accusative
indicates the direct object of the sentence, the object which directly receives the action. It is also used after the prepositions: durch, für, gegen, ohne, um
Ask the question:
| Wen oder Was gibt der Mann dem Hund? Einen Knochen | What does the man give to the dog? A bone |
Dative
indicates the indirect object, the receiver of the direct object. It is also used after the prepositions: aus, bei, mit, von, zu
Ask the question:
| Wem gibt der Mann einen Knochen? Dem Hund | To whom does the man give a bone? To the dog |
Genitive
indicates possession by s.o./s.th. or attributes of s.o./s.th., and it is also used after certain prepositions: e.g. wegen, trotz, infolge, dank
Ask the question:
| Wessen Hund gibt der Mann einen Knochen? Des Nachbarn | Whose dog does the man give a bone to? The neighbor's. |
Depending on the case, the definite or indefinite article changes, and sometimes the ending of the noun itself. The article is the most obvious indicator for German grammatical cases.
Declension with the definite/indefinite (the/a) article in singular
| masculine | feminine | neutrum | |
| nominative Wer? | der/ein Maler der/ein Nachbar der/ein Gedanke der/ein Lieferant | die/eine Katze | das/ein Zimmer das/ein Kind |
| accusative Wen/Was? | den/einen Maler den/einen Nachbarn den/einen Gedanken den/einen Lieferanten | die/eine Katze | das/ein Zimmer das/ein Kind |
| dative Wem? | dem/einem Maler dem/einem Nachbarn dem/einem Gedanken dem/einem Lieferanten | der/einer Katze | dem/einem Zimmer dem/einem Kind |
| genitive Wessen? | des/eines Malers des/eines Nachbarn des/eines Gedankens des/eines Lieferanten | der/einer Katze | des/eines Zimmers des/eines Kindes |
The declension of definite and indefinite articles is straightforward, though you do have to memorize it. The only tricky bits are some of the differing endings for the masculine and neutrum. But there is some logic to this.
Types of Declension in Singular:
Accusative/dative noun endings:
All feminine nouns remain the same. Most masculine and all neutrum nouns (with the exception of das Herz) do not change either.
But there are some exceptions that have the letters -n or -en added*:| der Junge, den Jungen, dem Jungen | the boy |
| der Kunde, den Kunden, dem Kunden | the customer |
| der Rabe, den Raben, dem Raben | the raven |
| der Russe, den Russen, dem Russen | the Russian |
| der Deutsche, den Deutschen, dem Deutschen | the German |
| der Bauer, den Bauern, dem Bauern | the farmer |
| der Nachbar, den Nachbarn, dem Nachbarn | the neighbor |
| der Bär, den Bären, dem Bären | the bear |
| der Fotograf, den Fotografen, dem Fotografen | the photographer |
| der Assistent, den Assistenten, dem Assistenten | the assistant |
| Der Advokat, den Advokaten, dem Advokaten | the lawyer |
This last group also ends with -s in the genitive case (the others don't!):
| der Buchstabe, den Buchstaben, dem Buchstaben, des Buchstabens | the letter |
| der Wille, den Willen, dem Willen, des Willens | the will |
| das Herz, das Herz, dem Herzen, des Herzens | the heart |
Genitive noun endings:
In the Genitive the fast majority of feminine nouns remain the same.
And so do names used with article, e.g.:
Some masculine and neutrum nouns have the letters -es added:
| Die Leiden des jungen Werther. | The sufferings of the young Werther. |
| Aufgrund ihres Erfolges wurde sie berühmt | Due to her success she became famous. |
| Am Rande des Glases war eine Fliege. | At the rim of the glass was a fly. |
| Ich habe den Sinn des Witzes nicht verstanden. | I did not understand the meaning of the joke. |
| Lars' Auto war kaputt. | Lars's car was broken. |
| Max' Freundin ist nicht zu Hause. | Max's girlfriend is not at home. |
Nouns that have the letters -s added:
| Der Griff des Hammers ist aus Holz. | The handle of the hammer is wood. |
| Die Lage des Zimmers war im Obergeschoss. | The room was situated upstairs. |
| Das Wasser des Sees war kalt. | The water of the lake was cold. |
| Der Geruch des Kaffees ist angenehm. | The smell of the coffee is pleasant. |
| Er hat Annas Mutter getroffen. | He met Anna ́s mother. |
| Wir wohnen im Zentrum Hamburgs. | We live in the center of Hamburg. |
Nouns that have the letter -(e)n added:
| Die Ernte des Bauern war mager. | The harvest of the farmer was poor. |
| Das Käfig des Affen ist klein. | The cage of the monkey is small. |
| Die Arbeit des Fotografen ist schön. | The work of the photographer is beautiful. |
| Ich glaube an die Macht des Guten. | I believe in the power of (the) good. |
The genitive is more commonly used in the written language. More casually Germans often use:
von + dative, e.g.
Er hat die Mutter von Anna (Annas Mutter) getroffen.
Der Käfig von dem Affen (des Affen) ist klein.
And finally we have to look at how declension affects the plural form of nouns.
Declension in Plural
Plural declension is much more simple than singular. You only have to remember the declension of the article die, which is identical for masculine, feminine and neutrum.
If you want to refer to an unspecified amount, you just omit the article altogether, same a in English, e.g.
| Fische schwimmen im Wasser | Fish swim in the water. |
| Ich kaufe Taschen. | I buy bags. |
The plural nouns remain unchanged in nominative, accusative and genitive.
The only case they can change, is the dative, which always needs to end with -n.
Exceptions are words ending with -s. They remain unchanged in all four cases.
Declension with the definite (the) article in plural:
words in plural with the following endings:
| -e | -en | singular & plural are the same | -er | -s | |
| nominative | die Fische | die Taschen | die Hügel | die Kinder | die Büros |
| accusative | die Fische | die Taschen | die Hügel | die Kinder | die Büros |
| dative | den Fischen | den Taschen | den Hügeln | den Kindern | den Büros |
| genitive | der Fische | der Taschen | der Hügel | der Kinder | der Büros |
You have now mastered the four German cases and the basics of declension!
Conclusion
There are four grammatical cases in German; the case you use, depends on the grammatical function of the noun in the sentence.
It can be helpful to use the questions: Wer? Wen oder Was? Wem? Wessen? to verify, if the noun is in nominative, accusative, dative or genitive; certain prepositions and a few verbs also require a specific case.
The article is another good identifier of the grammatical case. Learn which article belongs to which case by heart, there are not that many! Memorizing them will instantly demystify declension for you.
The endings of nouns can be a bit trickier, but often the noun actually does not change at all. So don't agonize about the endings, it will take some time to get used to. But eventually you will develop a feeling for what sounds right in conjunction with which article.