Recently, there has been a spelling reform of the German language. The following are a few points that have changed:
1. Write ss after a short vowel, and ß after a long vowel or diphthong. Please note that ß is not used in Switzerland or Liechtenstein and a lot of people don't pay attention to this rule anyway. Also, there is no capital letter that corresponds to the lower case ß, so it must be written as SS.
2. Words that are now capitalized: (auf) Deutsch, Mittag, Abend, Morgen, Recht haben, Leid tun.
3. The forms of Du (familiar you) are no longer capitalized in letters.
4. A comma is not necessary when two independent clauses are joined by und.
1) Feminine Singular nouns remain unchanged in all Singular cases.
| Singular: |
Typewriter |
Street |
| Nom. |
die Schreibmaschine |
die Straße |
| Acc. |
die Schreibmaschine |
die Straße |
| Dat. |
der Schreibmaschine |
der Straße |
| Gen. |
der Schreibmaschine |
der Straße |
2) All Neuter and most Masculine Singular add -s or -es (if one syllable) to Genitive Singular.
| Singular: |
Shoe |
Shirt |
| Nom. |
der Schuh |
das Hemd |
| Acc. |
den Schuh |
das Hemd |
| Dat. |
dem Schuh |
dem Hemd |
| Gen. |
des Schuhes |
des Hemdes |
3) Masculine nouns that end in -e in Nom. Sing. and designate living things add -n to form both Singular and Plural for all cases.
Lion(s)
|
Singular |
Plural |
| Nom. |
der Löwe |
die Löwen |
| Acc. |
den Löwen |
die Löwen |
| Dat. |
dem Löwen |
den Löwen |
| Gen. |
des Löwen |
der Löwen |
4) All Dative Plural either adds -n or -en.
|
Man |
Woman |
Child |
| Nom. Sing. |
der Mann |
die Frau |
das Kind |
| Dat. Pl. |
den Männern |
den Frauen |
den Kindern |
5) In Plurals of all declensions of all genders, the Nominative, Genitive, and Accusative Plural are the same.
|
Forest |
Pear |
| Nom. Sing. |
der Wald |
die Birne |
| Nom. Pl. |
die Wälder |
die Birnen |
| Acc. Pl. |
die Wälder |
die Birnen |
| Dat. Pl. |
den Wäldern |
den Birnen |
| Gen. Pl. |
der Wälder |
der Birnen |
Note: To form the Dative Plural, add -n or -en to the Nominative Plural, unless it already ends in -s or -n, then add nothing.
Most singular declensions can be formed from the first three rules above, but plural nouns are more complex and irregular. Some may add -n, -en, -r, -er, -e, or an umlaut over the stem vowel with a final -e, and some nouns do not change from singular to plural.
Group 1
-Singular follows rules
-Plural adds umlaut to stem vowel and -n to all datives
Father(s) (masc.)
|
Sing. |
Plural |
| Nom. |
der Vater |
die Väter |
| Acc. |
den Vater |
die Väter |
| Dat. |
dem Vater |
den Vätern |
| Gen. |
des Vaters |
der Väter |
Nouns belonging to this group: Most nouns whose Nom. Sing. end in -el, -en, -er; and neuter nouns that begin with Ge- and end with -e
Group 2
-Singular follows rules
-Plural sometimes adds umlaut to stem vowel and -e to Nominative, Genitive, and Accusative; -en to Dative
Fruit (fem.)
|
Sing. |
Plural |
| Nom. |
die Frucht |
die Früchte |
| Acc. |
die Frucht |
die Früchte |
| Dat. |
der Frucht |
den Früchten |
| Gen. |
der Frucht |
der Früchte |
Nouns belonging to this group: Masculine that are one syllable; half of feminine and neuter that are one syllable
Group 3
-Singular follow rules
-Plural adds umlaut to stem vowel and -er to Nominative, Genitive, and Accusative; -ern to Dative
Man/men (masc.)
|
Sing. |
Plural |
| Nom. |
der Mann |
die Männer |
| Acc. |
den Mann |
die Männer |
| Dat. |
dem Mann |
den Männern |
| Gen. |
des Mannes |
der Männer |
Nouns belonging to this group: Many neuter that are one syllable; no feminine nouns
Group 4
-Singular adds -en to all Masculine Dative, Accusative, and Genitive; Feminine follows rule
-Plural adds -n or -en to all forms
|
Student (s) |
|
Woman/Women |
|
Sing. |
Plural |
|
Sing. |
Plural |
| Nom. |
der Student |
die Studenten |
|
die Frau |
die Frauen |
| Acc. |
den Studenten |
die Studenten |
|
die Frau |
die Frauen |
| Dat. |
dem Studenten |
den Studenten |
|
der Frau |
den Frauen |
| Gen. |
des Studenten |
der Studenten |
|
der Frau |
der Frauen |
Nouns belonging to this group: Most feminine that are more than one syllable, most masculine that denote living things; no neuter nouns
Group 5
-Add -s to Genitive Singular
-Add -s to all plural forms
Auto(s) (neu.)
|
Sing. |
Plural |
| Nom. |
das Auto |
die Autos |
| Acc. |
das Auto |
die Autos |
| Dat. |
dem Auto |
den Autos |
| Gen. |
des Autos |
der Autos |
Nouns belonging to this group: Foreign origin words, such as das Radio, das Restaurant, and das Hotel.
Group 6 - Irregular
-Add -ns or -ens to Genitive Singular
-Add -en to Dative Singular, may add -en to Accusative Singular
-All plural add -en
|
Heart(s) |
|
Name(s) |
|
Sing. |
Plural |
|
Sing. |
Plural |
| Nom. |
das Herz |
die Herzen |
|
der Name |
die Namen |
| Acc. |
das Herz |
die Herzen |
|
den Namen |
die Namen |
| Dat. |
dem Herzen |
den Herzen |
|
dem Namen |
den Namen |
| Gen. |
des Herzens |
der Herzen |
|
des Namens |
der Namen |
Group 7 - Mixed
-Add -s or -es for Genitive Singular
-Add -n or -en for all plural
Bed(s) (neu.)
|
Sing. |
Plural |
| Nom. |
das Bett |
die Betten |
| Acc. |
das Bett |
die Betten |
| Dat. |
dem Bett |
den Betten |
| Gen. |
des Bettes |
der Betten |
German - Make-Believe Stuff, Spelling Reform, Review of Declensions of Nouns
