Adjective Declension
Master the tricky world of German adjective endings.
Welcome to another lesson about adjectives. This time, we'll go a little bit deeper and explore German adjective declension.
1. Attributive Adjectives
In the previous lesson, we used predicative adjectives, where the adjective comes after the verb. For example:
Predicative adjectives rely on a linking verb, like ist in the sentence above.
However, attributiveadjectives come before the noun and don't need a linking verb, allowing for more flexibility in sentence structure. For example:
Notice how the adjective grün is declined to grüne. This is because, when placed before the noun, both the article & the adjective become responsible for indicating it's case.
| Predicative Adjectives | Attributive Adjectives |
|---|---|
| ... are used after the noun | ... are used just before the noun |
| ... don't decline | ... decline |
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2. Declension Indicates Case
In German, identifying the case of a noun is important because it tells us the role it plays in a sentence, such as a subject or object. We can determine the noun's case through declension.
Remember:
Two types of words undergo declension: determiners (like articles) and attributive adjectives.
| Type | Example | Declines? |
|---|---|---|
| definite articles | der, die, das | 👍 |
| indefinite articles | ein, eine | 👍 |
| adjectives | lecker, groß, schön | 👍 |
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Check out these sentences:
- Der kalte Wind weht.the cold wind blows
- Kalter Wind weht.cold wind blows
In both, the case of the noun der Wind is clear through the declension of the article and/or adjective (nominative).
3. Adjective Declension (Nominative & Accusative)
Strong, Weak and Mixed Declension
Now that we know that attributive adjectives must decline, let's learn how to do this.
There are three ways to decline adjectives: strong, mixed and weak.
| Case | Masc | Fem | Neut | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nom | roter Apfel | rote Blume | rotes Haus | rote Autos |
| Acc | roten Apfel | rote Blume | rotes Haus | rote Autos |
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| Case | Masc | Fem | Neut | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nom | ein roter Apfel | eine rote Blume | ein rotes Haus | meine roten Autos |
| Acc | einen roten Apfel | eine rote Blume | ein rotes Haus | meine roten Autos |
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| Case | Masc | Fem | Neut | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nom | der rote Apfel | die rote Blume | das rote Haus | die roten Autos |
| Acc | den roten Apfel | die rote Blume | das rote Haus | die roten Autos |
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Notice that weak declension only uses -e and -en endings, while strong declension uses -er, -e, and -es endings to indicate noun gender as well as case, just like definite articles do.
To determine which type of declension to use, we can follow these rules:
- no article + adjective + noun → strong declension
- indefinite article('ein', 'mein') + adjective + noun → mixed declension
- definite article + adjective + noun → weak declension
| Type | Article | Adjective | Noun |
|---|---|---|---|
| strong | - | glücklicher | Junge |
| mixed | ein | glücklicher | Junge |
| weak | der | glückliche | Junge |
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4. Exercise
Now, take a look at the sentences below and try to correctly decline the adjectives, using the rules above.
5. Summary
Key things to consider when declining adjectives:
- Noun gender (die Schildkröte, der Apfel)
- Noun case (nominative or accusative)
- Whether to use strong, mixed or weak declension
Great job! 🎉 You've started using adjective declensions in your sentences! When you're ready, move on to the next lesson: German Negation.
Continue Learning
Negation
Negate in German