Wondering why a table is “he” and a girl is “it”? German grammatical gender sorts every noun into masculine, feminine or neuter, shown by der, die or das. Learn each noun with its article.
If you are new to the topic, the german language guide gives the wider overview.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Definite articles | Three: der, die, das |
| Plural definite article | die, for all genders |
| Nouns with more than one article | 1.5% (according to Duden) |
| Article of a compound noun | Set by the last noun |
| Diminutives -chen and -lein | Neuter |
These figures come from der-artikel.de and Open Educational Alberta. Usage counts and teaching rules can change, so check the source before you rely on them.
The three genders and their articles
Every German noun belongs to one of three genders: masculine, feminine or neuter. The gender shows in the definite article, which is der, die or das, all meaning “the”, as Open Educational Alberta explains.
- der Tisch (the table) is masculine.
- die Lampe (the lamp) is feminine.
- das Buch (the book) is neuter.
English is different, because its nouns are neutral and carry no gender, as Revision World points out. In German, the gender of a noun also affects the adjective endings and pronouns used with it.
In the plural, die is used for all genders: die Männer, die Frauen, die Bücher. That makes the plural the one place where you can stop worrying about which article to pick.
Native speakers usually know intuitively which article a word takes, according to der-artikel.de. As a learner, you build that feeling by repetition.
Does grammatical gender match the person or thing?
For people, the grammatical gender usually matches the biological sex. Examples are der Mann and die Frau, or der Lehrer and die Lehrerin, the female form of teacher.
For things and concepts, gender has nothing to do with biological sex. Both Open Educational Alberta and the Discovering German book give der Computer, das Telefon and die Lampe as examples.
Some words break the pattern for people. Das Mädchen (girl) is neuter because of its -chen ending, even though it names a female person.
A related topic is how a masculine noun can also stand for a mixed group, which the page on generic masculine german covers.
How gender shapes pronouns and adjectives
A personal pronoun reflects the gender of the noun it replaces. So der Computer becomes er, das Buch becomes es, and die Sonne becomes sie.
| Article | Pronoun |
|---|---|
| der | er (he, it) |
| das | es (it) |
| die (singular) | sie (she, it) |
| die (plural) | sie (they) |
Adjectives follow the same logic. In the nominative, der große Hund is masculine and die kleine Katze is feminine, as Revision World shows.
Choosing between du and Sie is a separate question about how you address a person. It is covered in german formal and informal you.
Noun endings that hint at gender
You cannot usually predict a noun’s gender from its form, but endings give useful clues. The table lists some common ones, drawn from der-artikel.de.
| Ending | Usual gender | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -er | Masculine | der Computer |
| -ling | Masculine | der Schmetterling |
| -e | Feminine | die Lampe |
| -heit / -keit | Feminine | die Schnelligkeit |
| -ung | Feminine | die Zeitung |
| -ion | Feminine | die Diskussion |
| -chen | Neuter | das Mädchen |
| -ment | Neuter | das Instrument |
The endings in this table come from der-artikel.de and Open Educational Alberta. Teaching rules can change, so check the sources before you rely on them.
Masculine endings reach beyond -er and -ling. Words ending in -ist or -ismus are masculine as well, as in der Journalist and der Kapitalismus.
Feminine endings are the largest group. The ending -in marks a female person, as in die Ärztin and die Prinzessin, and many endings of foreign origin are also feminine:
- -age, as in die Garage
- -ur, as in die Agentur
- -ik, as in die Physik
- -tät, as in die Qualität
Neuter has its own clues. Words ending in -um, such as das Zentrum, are neuter, and nouns with the prefix Ge- are often neuter, as with das Gemüse and das Geflügel, which are collective words.
Whole groups of words also follow a pattern. Seasons, months and days of the week are masculine, for example der Herbst, der Juli and der Sonntag.
Colour names such as das Grün and nominalised verbs such as das Schreiben are neuter. Treat all of these as strong tendencies, not laws, because der-artikel.de says its rules apply to most words in each category and exceptions remain.
A practical way to use these clues is to test every new word against the list. If a noun ends in -ung, die is a safe first guess, and if it ends in -chen, das is. When the ending is not on the list, fall back on memorising the article with the noun.
Even the common -e ending has exceptions. Revision World lists das Auge, the eye, as a neuter word with that ending, so a good guess is still only a guess.
Diminutives always turn neuter
The endings -chen and -lein make a word small, and the word then becomes neuter. Examples are die Katze, which turns into das Kätzchen, and der Tisch, which turns into das Tischlein.
German even has an old saying for it: -chen und -lein machen alle Dinge klein, which means the endings make all things small. Other examples are das Kindlein and das Büchlein, the little form of das Buch.
The diminutive ignores the gender of the original word. That is why a feminine noun like die Katze and a masculine noun like der Tisch both end up as das words once they shrink.
Exceptions, double articles and compound nouns
The endings apply to most words, but exceptions exist. About 1.5% of nouns can take more than one article, according to Duden as quoted by der-artikel.de.
Sometimes the article changes the meaning:
- der Band means a single book.
- die Band means a musical group.
- das Band means a tape.
Other words allow two or three articles with no change of meaning, such as der, die or das Joghurt.
With compound nouns, the last noun decides the article. Der Tisch plus die Decke gives die Tischdecke, and der Herbst plus das Wetter gives das Herbstwetter.
The same holds for verb plus noun, adjective plus noun and preposition plus noun. Wasch plus der Lappen gives der Waschlappen.
How to learn the articles with the nouns
Because exceptions exist, the sources agree on one habit: learn each noun together with its article. der-artikel.de calls this very important from the beginning.
- Write every new noun as “der Tisch”, never just “Tisch”.
- Note the ending and check it against the common patterns.
- For compound nouns, look up only the last part.
- Remember that all German nouns are capitalised, which makes them easy to spot.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a reliable rule for choosing der, die or das?
Show answer
Not a complete one. Gender usually cannot be predicted from the form of the word, but endings such as -ung or -er give good clues, as Open Educational Alberta notes.
Does grammatical gender equal biological sex?
Show answer
For people it usually does, but for things it does not. A table is masculine and a lamp is feminine, and neither has a sex.
Which article does a compound noun take?
Show answer
The article of its last part. That is why Tisch plus Decke gives die Tischdecke.
Can one noun have several articles?
Show answer
Yes, but it is rare. Duden counts about 1.5% of nouns, according to der-artikel.de.
Why is das Mädchen neuter?
Show answer
The ending -chen is a diminutive, and diminutives are neuter. The word’s form wins over the sex of the person it names.
