Linguata
Learning the German Language. 3
Adjectives
When adjectives precede a noun they are declined; when they stand on their own they are not declined. How they are declined varies slightly according to whether they are ‘determined’ i.e. preceded by an article such as ‘the’ or ‘a’, a demonstrative adjective such as this, or a possessive pronominal adjective such as ‘my’. So, for example, ‘good’ and ‘dog’ vary as follows:
|
1. |
Good dog |
Guter Hund |
|
2. |
The good dog |
Der gute Hund |
|
3. |
This good dog |
Dieser gute Hund |
|
4. |
A good dog |
Ein guter Hund |
|
5. |
My good dog |
Mein guter Hund |
But ‘der Hund ist gut’ (the dog is good): here gut is not declined because it stands on its own.
The following tables set the ‘determined’ situation out in more detail:
‘Strong’ declension
(adjective not preceded by article, etc):
|
SINGULAR |
PLURAL |
|||
|
Masculine |
Feminine |
Neuter |
All genders |
|
|
good man |
good woman |
good child |
good men… |
|
|
Nom. |
guter Mann |
gute Frau |
gutes Kind |
gute Männer |
|
Acc. |
guten Mann |
gute Frau |
gutes Kind |
gute… |
|
Gen. |
guten Mannes |
guter Frau |
guten Kindes |
guter… |
|
Dat. |
gutem Manne |
guter Frau |
gutem Kinde |
guten… |
‘Weak’ declension
(after der, dieser, jeder, jener, solcher, welcher):
SINGULAR
PLURAL
Masculine
Feminine
Neuter
All genders
the good man
the good woman
the good child
the good men, etc.
Nom.
der gute Mann
die gute Frau
das gute Kind
die guten Männer..
Acc.
den guten Mann
die gute Frau
das gute Kind
die guten …
Gen.
des guten Mannes
der guten Frau
des guten Kindes
der guten …
Dat.
dem guten Manne
der guten Frau
dem guten Kinde
den guten …
‘Mixed’ Declension
(adjective preceded by ein, kein, or a pronominal adjective such as mein):
SINGULAR
PLURAL
Masculine
Feminine
Neuter
All genders
a good man
a good woman
a good child
my good men, etc.
Nom.
ein guter Mann
eine gute Frau
ein gutes Kind
meine guten Männer, etc.
Acc.
einen guten Mann
eine gute Frau
ein gutes Kind
guten
Gen.
eines guten Mannes
einer guten Frau
eines guten Kindes
guten
Dat.
einem guten Manne
einer guten Frau
einem guten Kinde
guten
Note : To avoid confusion it is best to concentrate on the weak and mixed adjectival patterns as being the most commonly occurring. They are identical except in the masculine nominative and the neuter nominative and accusative singular. All other singular and plural cases end in –en.
Recommended Reading
A Skeleton German Grammar (Blackie and Sons, London, 1902) by Prof. H.G.Atkins (hard to come by but well worth looking for).
