Changes in the nominative case
The definite articleThe definite article goes before a noun and indicates that the person, place or thing can be identified, ie is specific. In English it would be 'the' or 'this', eg I took the suitcase on holiday. and the indefinite articleThe indefinite article goes before a noun and indicates that the person, place or thing cannot be identified, ie it could be one of many. In English it would be 'a' or 'an', eg I took a suitcase on holiday. remain the same and do not change in the nominative case.
| Definite | Indefinite | |
| Masculine | der | ein/kein |
| Feminine | die | eine/keine |
| Neuter | das | ein/kein |
| Plural | die | ––/keine |
| Masculine | |
|---|---|
| Definite | der |
| Indefinite | ein/kein |
| Feminine | |
|---|---|
| Definite | die |
| Indefinite | eine/keine |
| Neuter | |
|---|---|
| Definite | das |
| Indefinite | ein/kein |
| Plural | |
|---|---|
| Definite | die |
| Indefinite | ––/keine |
The following words change in the same way as ein and kein:
- mein – my
- dein – your (informal, singular)
- sein – his
- ihr – her
- unser – our
- euer – your (informal, plural)
- Ihr – your (formal, singular and plural)
- ihr – their
Examples in use
Here are some examples of the definite and indefinite articles being used in the nominative case. Remember that the nominative case shows the subject, ie the person or thing doing the action.
- Ein Hund isst den Hamburger. – A dog is eating the hamburger.
'A dog' is doing the eating, so 'a dog' is the subject.
- Der Junge singt das Lied. – The boy is singing the song.
'The boy' is doing the singing of the song, so 'the boy' is the subject.
Pronouns in the nominative case
In the nominative case the personal pronouns are:
| German | English |
| ich | I |
| du | you (singular, informal) |
| sie | she |
| er | he |
| es | it |
| wir | we |
| Ihr | you (plural, informal) |
| Sie | you (singular or plural, formal) |
| sie | they |
| German | ich |
|---|---|
| English | I |
| German | du |
|---|---|
| English | you (singular, informal) |
| German | sie |
|---|---|
| English | she |
| German | er |
|---|---|
| English | he |
| German | es |
|---|---|
| English | it |
| German | wir |
|---|---|
| English | we |
| German | Ihr |
|---|---|
| English | you (plural, informal) |
| German | Sie |
|---|---|
| English | you (singular or plural, formal) |
| German | sie |
|---|---|
| English | they |
Examples
- Ich spiele die Gitarre. – I play the guitar.
The ich ('I') is doing the action, ie the playing.
- Wir gehen einkaufen. – We are going shopping.
The wir ('we') is doing the action, ie going shopping.
Hilfsvokabeln– Helpful vocabulary
- die Farbe (f) – colour
- das Foto (nt) – photo
- die Lehrerin (f) – female teacher
- das Rathaus (nt) – town hall
- der Schüler (m) – pupil
- die Schüler (pl) – pupils
- die Stadt (f) – town
- der Turm (m) – tower
- das Vorbild (nt) – role-model
Question
Look at these sentences and fill in the missing article or pronoun.
- _____ Rathaus in Ulm liegt in der Stadtmitte. – The town hall in Ulm is situated in the town centre.
- _____ Stadt liegt an der Donau. – The town lies on the river Danube.
- _____ Turm des Ulmer Münsters ist der höchste Turm in der Welt. – The tower of the Ulm minster is the highest tower in the world.
- _____ Lieblingsfarbe ist rot. – My favourite colour is red.
- _____ Vorbild ist Albert Einstein. – My role-model is Albert Einstein.
- _____ Schüler sind heute in der Schule. – No pupils are in school today.
- Hier ist _____ Foto von Ulm. – Here is a photo of Ulm.
- _____ war _____ Lehrerin. – She was my teacher.
- Das Rathaus in Ulm liegt in der Stadtmitte.
- Die Stadt liegt an der Donau.
- Der Turm des Ulmer Münsters ist der höchste Turm in der Welt.
- Meine Lieblingsfarbe ist rot.
- Mein Vorbild ist Albert Einstein.
- Keine Schüler sind heute in der Schule.
- Hier ist ein Foto von Ulm.Remember: The subject is usually but not always the first word. Here Foto is the subject.
- Sie war meine Lehrerin.Remember:sie and meine Lehrerin are the same person, so both are the subject and both are in the nominative case.
Did you know?
The cathedral – das Münster – in Ulm, Baden-Württemberg has the tallest steeple in the world – der höchste Kirchturm der Welt. It is 161.53 m high and there are 768 steps to the top.
Ulm also happens to be the birthplace – der Geburtsort – of Albert Einstein, the German physicist who famously developed the theory of relativity.
Here's a quote from Einstein starting with the nominative case – ich is the subject because ich is doing the teaching.
Ich lehre meine Schüler nichts; Ich versuche nur Bedingungen für sie zu schaffen, in denen sie lernen können. - I never teach my pupils; I only attempt to provide the conditions in which they can learn.
