A1Word classes

Der, die, das and ein, eine

Why do different words appear before nouns?

Take a look

Der Hund ist groß.

The dog is big.

Take a look

Der Hund ist groß.The dog is big.
Die Katze schläft.The cat is sleeping.
Das Kind spielt.The child is playing.
Ein Mann liest ein Buch.A man is reading a book.
Eine Frau trinkt Kaffee.A woman is drinking coffee.

The rule

A German noun often has an article before it. Learn each noun with its basic article: der Tisch, die Suppe, das Haus. For a specific thing, use der, die or das. For a thing you have not identified yet, use ein or eine: ein Tisch, eine Suppe, ein Haus. Articles can change elsewhere in a sentence; this table gives the basic form.

Remember: Learn each noun together with its article.

Goes with lesson 3, 4, 10 of the course.

What differs for you

English uses a and the before nouns, so the purpose of an article is familiar. English articles do not tell you whether a noun is masculine, feminine or neuter. German makes you learn that choice with each noun: “der Tisch”, “die Suppe”, “das Haus”. The gender belongs to the German word, not to the object it names.

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The forms

Articles in the basic form

Nomen	bestimmt	unbestimmt
Tisch	der	ein
Suppe	die	eine
Haus	das	ein

Common mistakes

*der Suppedie Suppe.
*eine Hausein Haus.

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Quick check

Choose the correct article.___ Tisch ist braun.
Choose the correct article.___ Blume ist schön.
Insert the correct article.___ Auto ist neu.
Choose the correct article.___ Zeitung liegt auf dem Tisch.
Insert the correct article.___ Mädchen lacht. (definite article)
Correct the mistake in the sentence.Der Lampe ist kaputt.
Which noun is masculine?Welches Nomen hat den Artikel 'der'?

The answers appear after “Check”.

The same exercises come back in the course — there Langula remembers what you know and asks again at the right moment. Learn German free →

← Grammar

Word classes

A1Plural nounsWhat changes in “Brüder” and “Kinder”?A1Personal pronounsPersonal pronouns replace nouns and indicate the person.A2Adjective endingsWhy “einen roten Mantel” but “eine freundliche Person”?A2Groß, größer, am größtenWhat does “am liebsten” mean compared with “gern”?A2Mein, dein, sein: whose is it?Whose passport does “Ihren Reisepass” refer to?B2NominalizationNominalization means turning verbs or adjectives into nouns.

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