German words flashcards

Flashcards with German nouns

250 frequent German nouns, gender an plural shown on card.
Interactive test, answer question: DER, DIE or DAS?
Dynamic table shows articles for the noun at four cases.

Masc.

Neuter

Fem.

Plural

Nom.

der

das

die

Acc.

den

das

die

Dat.

dem

der

den

Gen.

des

der

Want to learn more grammar? Read what follows.

Common Accusative prepositions.
Common Dative prepositions.
Two-way prepositions, Accusative or Dative.
Frequent verbs with Accusative.
Frequent verbs with Dative.
Genitive prepositions.

Word order in German sentences, two important rules

German sentences follow the order Time - Manner - Place. Always place When before How before Where.
Ich war / letzten Sonntag / mit meinem Bruder / in Wien.
I was / (When?) last Sunday/ (How?) with my brother / (Where?) in Vienna.
Place the verb in the second place in the main sentence and at the end of the subordinate sentence.
Ich gehe nicht ins Museum, weil ich keine Zeit habe.
I don't go to the museum because I don't have time.

German noun gender and noun case

Each noun, person or object, has a grammatical gender: masculine, feminine or neutral.
Depending on the action in the sentence, each noun always takes one grammatical case. The article in front of the noun often changes, depending to the case.
A noun takes nominative case if is the subject of the sentence.
A noun takes accusative case if is object of a common accusative verb, if it follows accusative preposition or a “two way” preposition showing movement.
A noun takes dative case if is object of a common dative verb, if it follows dative preposition or a “two way” preposition showing static position.
A noun takes genitive case if it shows possession or if it follows a genitive preposition.

German noun, cases example

See how the masculine noun "der Computer" changes, depending to the case in the sentence.

Nominative

Der Computer ist kaput. The computer is broken.

The noun takes nominative case because is the subject of the sentence.

Accusative

Hans repariert den Computer. Hans repairs the computer.

The noun takes accusative case because is the object of the common accusative verb "reparieren".

Dative

Kabel befinden sich hinter dem Computer. Cables are behind the computer.

The noun takes the dative case because it follows the "two way" preposition "hinter" and shows static position, no movement.

Genitive

Hans ersetzt die Frontplatte des Computers. Hans replaces computer’s front panel.

The noun takes the genitive case because it shows possession: to whom does the front panel belong.

Verbs with accusative: anrufen: to call, benutzen: to use, bestellen: to order, besuchen: to visit, bezahlen: to pay for, einkaufen: to buy, essen: to eat, haben: to have, lessen: to read, möchten: to want, verlieren: to lose.
And many other verbs.

Verbs with Dative:antworten: to answer, danken: to thank, folgen: to follow, gefallen: to like, gehören: to belong, helfen: to help, schaden: to damage, vertrauen: to trust. And many other verbs.

Two-way prepositions with examples

When the sentence is about movement near an object, or above it, or inside it, or under it, or on it, or between two objects, all those objects are in the accusative case. Also, keep in mind that these verbs describe movement: legen (to place,to put), setzen (to set, to sit), stellen (to set, to put) , gehen (to go), laufen (to run), fahren (to drive), fliegen (to fly).

When the sentence is about static position, that doesn’t move, about something that is already near an object, or above it, or inside it, or under it, or on it, or between two objects, all those objects are in the dative case. Also, keep in mind that these verbs describe static position: liegen (to lie), sitzen (to sit), stehen (to stand), bleiben (to remain, to stay), schlafen (to sleep), wohnen (to live, to reside).

IN (das Kino)
A: Markus geht ins Kino. Markus goes in the cinema.
D: Markus ist im Kino. Markus is in the cinema.

AN (die Wand)
A: Greta hängt das Bild an die Wand. Greta hangs the picture on the wall.
D: Das Bild hängt an der Wand. The picture hangs on the wall.

AUF (der Tisch)
A: Klaus legt das Handi auf den Tisch. Klaus puts the mobile phone on the table.
D: Das Handi liegt auf dem Tisch. The mobile phone is on the table.

VOR (das Haus)
A: Anna geht vor das Haus. Anna goes in front of the house.
D: Anna ist vor dem Haus. Anna is in front of the house.

HINTER (das Haus)
A: Sofia geht hinter das Haus. Sofia goes behind the house.
D: Sofia ist hinter dem Haus. Sofia is behind the house.

ÜBER (der Tisch)
A: Jürgen hängt die Lampe über den Tisch. Jürgen hangs the lamp over the table.
D: Die Lampe hängt über dem Tisch. The lamp is hanging over the table.

UNTER (die Brücke)
A: Ein Mann geht unter die Brücke. A man goes under the bridge.
D: Ein Mann ist unter der Brücke. A man is under the bridge.

NEBEN (das Bett)
A: Elsa stellt den Ventilator neben das Bett. Elsa puts the fan near the bed.
D: Der Ventilator steht neben dem Bett. The fan is next to the bed.

ZWISCHEN (der Tisch, der Sessel)
A: Paul stellt die Lampe zwischen den Tisch und den Sessel. Paul places the lamp between the table and the armchair.
D: Die Lampe steht zwischen dem Tisch und dem Sessel. The lamp is between the table and the armchair.

Free flashcards with frequent German nouns. Noun gender and plural form displayed on card.