A2 · Grammar · Adjektivdeklination
German Adjective Endings: Strong, Weak and Mixed, Made Usable
The ruleAn adjective before a noun carries the case marking only when the word in front of it does not, so the article decides which of the three endings sets you use.
This is the table German learners re-check for years, so it is worth understanding rather than memorising. German insists that every noun phrase shows its gender and case exactly once. If the article already shows it, the adjective can relax and take a neutral ending. If there is no article, or the article is one of the ones that gives nothing away, the adjective has to do the marking itself.
After der, die, das: the weak endings
The article has already announced gender and case, so the adjective adds almost nothing: -e in five cells, -en everywhere else.
| — | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | der gute Wein | die gute Milch | das gute Bier | die guten Weine |
| Accusative | den guten Wein | die gute Milch | das gute Bier | die guten Weine |
| Dative | dem guten Wein | der guten Milch | dem guten Bier | den guten Weinen |
| Genitive | des guten Weines | der guten Milch | des guten Bieres | der guten Weine |
After ein, kein, mein: the mixed endings
Identical to the weak set except in the three cells where ein itself has no ending and therefore tells you nothing. In exactly those cells the adjective takes over the article's job.
| — | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | ein guter Wein | eine gute Milch | ein gutes Bier | keine guten Weine |
| Accusative | einen guten Wein | eine gute Milch | ein gutes Bier | keine guten Weine |
| Dative | einem guten Wein | einer guten Milch | einem guten Bier | keinen guten Weinen |
| Genitive | eines guten Weines | einer guten Milch | eines guten Bieres | keiner guten Weine |
The three cells to watch are masculine nominative (guter), neuter nominative and neuter accusative (gutes). Everywhere else the mixed and weak tables agree.
With no article at all: the strong endings
Nothing in front of the adjective, so the adjective takes the endings the definite article would have had. Compare the two rows and the pattern is unmistakable.
| — | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | guter Wein | gute Milch | gutes Bier | gute Weine |
| Accusative | guten Wein | gute Milch | gutes Bier | gute Weine |
| Dative | gutem Wein | guter Milch | gutem Bier | guten Weinen |
| Genitive | guten Weines | guter Milch | guten Bieres | guter Weine |
The genitive singular is the one place strong endings do not copy the article: guten Weines, not gutes Weines, because the noun's own -es already does the marking.
The shortcut worth having
- Is the adjective after the noun, or after sein, werden, bleiben? Then it takes no ending at all: Der Wein ist gut.
- Otherwise, look at the word in front. Does it show the case? Then the adjective takes -e or -en: -e only in the singular nominative and the feminine and neuter accusative.
- Does nothing in front show the case? Then the adjective takes the ending der would have had.
Where it goes wrong
Ich trinke ein kaltes Bier mit meinem guten Freund und ein gutes Wein.
Ich trinke ein kaltes Bier mit meinem guten Freund und einen guten Wein.
der Wein is masculine, and trinken takes an accusative object, so both the article and the adjective have to move: einen guten Wein. Masculine accusative is where this error concentrates, because it is the only gender that changes shape there.
Test yourself
3 questions on this
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1 Adjektivdeklination nach 'eines' (Genitiv, maskulin/neutrum, starke Deklination: -en) Sprachbausteine
Man spricht aber auch von der Heimat eines Volkes.
Show answer
Correct answer: ganzen
Nach 'eines' (Genitiv Singular) wird das Adjektiv stark dekliniert: 'eines ganzen Volkes'.
Read the full text: Heimat
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2 Adjektivendung nach 'nur' (Plural, Nominativ/Akkusativ) Sprachbausteine
Man übt also vorerst keine ganzen Stücke, sondern nur Teile.
Show answer
Correct answer: einzelne
Das Adjektiv 'einzelne' steht im Plural ohne Artikel, daher Endung -e.
Read the full text: Ballett
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3 Adjektivdeklination nach unbestimmtem Artikel (kein Artikel hier, aber Nominativ Plural). Sprachbausteine
Außerdem redet die Milz immer dazwischen und stellt Fragen.
Show answer
Correct answer: blöde
Im Text steht 'blöde Fragen' – Nominativ Plural, keine Endung nach Nullartikel.
Read the full text: Otto Waalkes
Common questions
How do I know whether to use strong, weak or mixed adjective endings?
Look at what stands in front of the adjective. A definite article or a der-word gives weak endings; ein, kein or a possessive gives mixed; nothing at all gives strong. The logic is that the case has to be marked once: whichever word can do it, does.
When does a German adjective take no ending?
When it is not in front of a noun. After sein, werden and bleiben the adjective is a predicate and stays bare: 'Das Auto ist neu', 'Der Wein wird alt'. Endings appear only in the attributive position, directly before the noun.
Why is it 'ein guter Wein' but 'der gute Wein'?
Because ein has no ending in the masculine nominative and therefore does not show the case. The adjective steps in and takes the -er that der carries. In 'der gute Wein' the article has already done that work, so the adjective settles for -e.
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