German lessons · German grammar · A1
der, die, das: how to guess a noun's gender
Every German noun has a grammatical gender: masculine (der), feminine (die) or neuter (das). English has just one "the", so this feels random at first, and often it really is. But a few endings and groups are very reliable. Learn them and you will guess correctly far more often.
1. Endings that tell you the gender
Some endings almost always decide the article, no matter what the word means.
| Ending | Article | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| -ung | die | die Zeitung, die Wohnung |
| -heit | die | die Freiheit, die Gesundheit |
| -keit | die | die Möglichkeit, die Freundlichkeit |
| -schaft | die | die Freundschaft, die Mannschaft |
| -chen | das | das Mädchen, das Brötchen |
| -lein | das | das Büchlein, das Fräulein |
-chen and -lein make things "small", and small things are always das, even a girl: das Mädchen.
- Die Zeitung liegt auf dem Tisch. — The newspaper is on the table.
- Die Freundschaft ist wichtig. — Friendship is important.
- Das Mädchen heißt Lena. — The girl is called Lena.
2. Groups that are der, and compound nouns
Male people, days, months and seasons are der. Women are usually die (die Frau, die Lehrerin). A compound noun always takes the article of its last word.
| Rule | Examples |
|---|---|
| male people | der Mann, der Lehrer |
| days | der Montag, der Freitag |
| months | der Januar, der Mai |
| seasons | der Frühling, der Sommer, der Herbst, der Winter |
| compound = last word | das Haus + die Tür → die Haustür |
| der Apfel + der Saft → der Apfelsaft | |
| das Kind + der Garten → der Kindergarten |
- Der Montag ist mein Lieblingstag. — Monday is my favourite day.
- Der Sommer in Berlin ist warm. — Summer in Berlin is warm.
- Die Haustür ist offen. — The front door is open.
3. Learn every noun with its article
For most nouns there is no rule, so never learn "Tisch" alone – learn der Tisch. A popular trick is colour: write der words in blue, die words in red and das words in green on your flashcards. After a while you "see" the colour of a word. Learn the plural too: in the plural every noun takes die (die Zeitungen, die Tische).
| Colour | Article | Example |
|---|---|---|
| blue | der | der Tisch |
| red | die | die Lampe |
| green | das | das Buch |
Common mistakes
- ✗ der Mädchen → ✓ das Mädchen (-chen is always das)
- ✗ das Zeitung → ✓ die Zeitung (-ung is always die)
- ✗ das Haustür → ✓ die Haustür (the last word, Tür, decides)
Quick check
- ___ Wohnung
Answer
die Wohnung – the ending -ung is always die.- ___ Brötchen
Answer
das Brötchen – the ending -chen is always das.- ___ Kindergarten
