Articles
Definite the Indefinite a(n)
Der (Masc.) Ein (M.)
Das (Neuter) Ein (N.)
Die (Fem.) Eine (F.)
Die (Plural)
e.x. Das Baum The tree
Die Bäume The trees
Note every noun must be capitalised.
Negative articles are kein (M. & N.) and keine (F.)
They translate to “no, none or not any”
Pronouns
Singular
First person Ich I
Second person Du You
Third person Er/Es/Sie He/It/She
Plural
First person Wir We
Second person Ihr You (Pl.)
Third person Sie They
Note ‘Sie’ with capital ‘S’ can also be used as formal ‘you’ (Pl. & Sing.)
Verb conjugation (Present tense)
To conjugate a verb in German present tense, we take the stem of the verb
from the infinitive form and add the appropriate ending.
e.x. machen → mach-
Infinitive stem
form
ich mache wir machen
du machst ihr macht
er macht sie machen
Ending Chart
Singular
First person Ich -e
Second person Du -st
Third person Er/Es/Sie -t
Plural
First person Wir -en
Second person Ihr -t
Third person Sie -en
Irregular verbs
Werden—to become
Singular
First person Ich werde I shall become
Second person Du wirst You shall become
Third person Er/Es/Sie wird He/It/She shall become
Plural
First person Wir werden We shall become
Second person Ihr werdet You (Pl.) shall become
Third person Sie werden They shall become
Sein—to be
Singular
First person Ich bin I am
Second person Du bist You are
Third person Er/Es/Sie ist He/It/She is
Plural
First person Wir sind We are
Second person Ihr seid You (Pl.) are
Third person Sie werden They are
Note Irregular verbs typically have a stem vowel change in the second- and
third-person singular. Usually e→I, e→ie, a→ä
Nominative (Subject’s case)
The subject of the sentence is the noun doing the action/using the verb of
the sentence or is the one being described.
The subject is ‘she’.
She throws the ball to jenny. *‘to’ is a preposition
The verb is ‘throws’.
The object is ‘ball’.
The indirect object is ‘jenny’.
In nominative case in German, we use these articles and pronouns:
Definite article the Indefinite article a(n)
Der (Masc.) Ein (M.)
Das (Neuter) Ein (N.)
Die (Fem.) Eine (F.)
Die (Plural)
Singular Pronouns
First person Ich I
Second person Du You
Third person Er/Es/Sie He/It/She
Plural Pronouns
First person Wir We
Second person Ihr You (Pl.)
Third person Sie They
Question Forms
In answer forms/statements, the verb is in the second position. In question
forms the verb comes first, then followed by the subject.
• Ja/Nein-Fragen (yes or no questions)
Rule: conjugated verb + subject + …
e.x. ist dein vater gesund?
• Interrogative word questions (how long, why, what, …)
Rule: interrogative word + conjugated verb + subject + …
e.x. wie lange dauert der Film?
• For sentences that starts with another word than the subject i.e.
heute (today), als (as):
Rule: opening word + conjugated verb + subject + …
e.x. heute fahren wir nach Goslar
Interrogative words
Was what
Wie how
Wer who
Warum, wieso, weshalb why
Wann when
Accusative (Direct object’s case)
Objects are the one who are being used by the verb. In English we can ask
whom or what of the verb is in a sentence and the answer of that will be the
direct object.
The subject is ‘she’.
She throws the ball to jenny. *‘to’ is a preposition
The verb is ‘throws’.
The object is ‘ball’.
Here, the ball is being used by
The indirect object is ‘jenny’.
the verb “to throw”. it makes it
the direct object.
e.x. Ich liebe dich I love you
Like in English, direct objects can be nouns or pronouns. All the direct
objects have to use the accusative articles or pronouns:
Definite article the Indefinite article a(n)
Den (Masc.) Einen(M.)
Das (Neuter) Ein (N.)
Die (Fem.) Eine (F.)
Die (Plural)
‘Kein’ in the masculine form becomes ‘keinen’
Singular Pronouns
First person Mich Me
Second person Dich You
Third person Ihn/Es/Sie Him/it/her
Plural Pronouns
First person Uns Us
Second person Euch You (Pl.)
Third person Sie Them
Accusative prepositions
Like in English, pronouns decline after a preposition
e.x. for me
I (nominative) → me (accusative)
In German there are a list of prepositions that will change/decline pronouns
or articles into their accusative form:
Accusative Prepositions
Bis until/as far as
Durch through/across
Entlang along(side)
Für for
Gegen against
Ohne without
Um around/at (time on a clock)
Wider against/contrary to
Negations
In German we can negate things by using ‘nicht’ or negative articles such as
‘kein’. In English, ‘nicht’ is equivalent to not and ‘kein’ to none or not any.
Rule:
Nicht + verb/ adjective
Kein + noun
e.x. Ich trinke kein kaffee. I dont drink (any) coffee.
noun
e.x. Das ist nicht gut. That is not good.
adjective
e.x. Ich mache das nicht. I do not do that.
verb
