German grammar › A1

Nouns — the basics

Level A1 · der, die, das — and why it matters

What is special about German nouns?

A noun is a word for a person, thing, place or idea: Mann, Tisch, Berlin, Liebe. In German, every noun has a grammatical gender — der, die or das — and always starts with a capital letter.

Why it matters

  • The article changes later with the case, so you need the gender to build sentences.
  • Gender is grammar, not biology: das Mädchen (the girl) is neuter.
  • Capital letters help you spot nouns when you read.

Always learn

article + Noun

Examples

  • der Tisch — the table (masculine)
  • die Lampe — the lamp (feminine)
  • das Buch — the book (neuter)

Remember: Think of the article as part of the word’s spelling.

Watch out: English “the” has one form; German has three — and you often can’t guess which one from the meaning.

Learn every noun with der, die or das

der Tisch — the table

Capital letter

  • der Tisch · die Schule · das Haus
  • Every noun starts with a capital letter.

Three genders

  • der Tisch, Mann · die Frau, Schule · das Haus, Buch

Always with the article

  • der Tisch, not Tisch

-chen / -lein: always das

  • -chen · -lein → das
  • das Mädchen (girl) · das Häuschen (little house) · das Büchlein (little book)
  • das Mädchen is a girl, but the word is das because of -chen.

Two nouns together

  • das Haus + die Tür = die Haustür
  • The last noun decides.

People & jobs

  • der Lehrer → die Lehrerin · der Arzt → die Ärztin
  • A woman: add -in, the article is die.

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