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IB Diploma German B HL Β· Grammar backbone 3 of 10 β€” Adjective endings
IB German B Grammar

Adjective endings

German adjectives before a noun take an ending, and which ending depends on the article in front. There are three patterns β€” weak (after der/die/das), mixed (after ein-words) and strong (no article). One principle ties them together.

the gender/case must show onceder shows it β†’ adjective relaxes Β· no der β†’ adjective carries it

Work through each screen and answer the questions β€” some ask you to spot the ending, some to produce it. Collect ⭐ and press Start.

This grammar backbone powers every IB German B (HL) theme: Identities, Experiences, Human ingenuity, Social organization and Sharing the planet β€” and the accuracy you need to discuss your two literary works in the HL written assignment and individual oral.

The big idea

One principle behind all three

The gender and case have to be signalled once in the noun phrase. If the article already shows it (der, die, das, dem…), the adjective can relax to a soft ending. If there is no article β€” or an endingless one like ein β€” the adjective must carry the marker itself:

  • der gute Wein β€” 'der' shows masc. nom., so adjective is weak (-e).
  • guter Wein β€” no article, so the adjective takes the strong -er.

Predicate adjectives take no ending: Der Wein ist gut. Endings appear only before a noun.

Weak declension

After der / die / das

After a definite article (or dieser, jeder, welcher) the endings are gentle: -e in the nominative singular and neuter/feminine accusative, and -en everywhere else.

casemaskulinfemininneutrumPlural
Nominativder gute Manndie gute Fraudas gute Kinddie guten Kinder
Akkusativden guten Manndie gute Fraudas gute Kinddie guten Kinder
Dativdem guten Mannder guten Fraudem guten Kindden guten Kindern

Shortcut: only five weak slots take -e (nom. sing. Γ—3, acc. fem., acc. neut.). Everything else is -en.

Quick check

Weak ending

?Complete: Der ___ Mann schlΓ€ft. ("The good man is sleeping.") β€” nominative masculine.
Type it

Your turn β€” weak

1Add the ending: die jung__ Frau ("the young woman") β€” nominative feminine, from jung.
Hint: write the whole adjective; after 'die' the weak ending is -e.
Mixed declension

After ein / kein / mein

After an ein-word the adjective is weak (-en) except in the three slots where ein itself has no ending β€” masc. nom. and neut. nom./acc. β€” where the adjective must show the strong marker:

casemaskulinfemininneutrum
Nominativein guter Manneine gute Frauein gutes Kind
Akkusativeinen guten Manneine gute Frauein gutes Kind
Dativeinem guten Manneiner guten Fraueinem guten Kind

Three strong slots: ein guter Mann, ein gutes Kind (nom.) and ein gutes Kind (acc.). Everywhere else the ending is -en.

Quick check

Mixed ending

?Complete: Ein ___ Mann wartet. ("A good man is waiting.") β€” nominative masculine.
Sort it

Choose the ending

Type it

Your turn β€” mixed neuter

2Add the ending: ein klein__ Kind ("a small child") β€” nominative neuter, from klein.
Hint: 'ein' is endingless for neuter, so the adjective shows the strong -es (like das).
Strong declension

No article at all

With no article (mass nouns, plurals, after etwas/viel) the adjective must do all the work, taking endings that mirror der/die/das:

casemaskulinfemininneutrumPlural
Nominativguter Weingute Milchgutes Biergute Weine
Akkusativguten Weingute Milchgutes Biergute Weine
Dativgutem Weinguter Milchgutem Bierguten Weinen

One quirk: the masc./neut. genitive strong ending is -en (guten Weines), because the noun's -s already flags the case.

Quick check

Strong ending

?Complete: ___ Bier schmeckt gut. ("Cold beer tastes good.") β€” no article, nominative neuter, from kalt.
Type it

Your turn β€” strong

3Add the ending: gut__ Wein ist teuer. ("Good wine is expensive.") β€” no article, nominative masculine, from gut.
Hint: no article, masc. nom. β†’ the adjective shows the strong -er (like der).
Game Β· Match

Match the phrase to its ending

Tap a slot on the left, then the correctly filled phrase (all nominative, from gut).

SLOT
der __ Mann
ein __ Mann
__ Wein
das __ Kind
ein __ Kind
__ Bier
FILLED
ein gutes Kind
der gute Mann
gutes Bier
ein guter Mann
das gute Kind
guter Wein
In the cases

The -en workhorse

Outside those few strong slots, the ending you reach for is almost always -en. It covers all datives, all genitives, all plurals, and the masculine accusative:

  • mit dem neuen Auto β€” dative, weak -en.
  • Ich sehe den alten Mann. β€” accusative masculine, weak -en.
  • die guten BΓΌcher β€” plural, -en.

Exam habit: if you are ever unsure and it is dative, genitive or plural, -en is the safe bet.

Quick check

Dative adjective

?Complete: Ich fahre mit dem ___ Auto. ("I drive the new car.") β€” dative neuter, from neu.
Type it

Your turn β€” accusative masculine

4Add the ending: Ich sehe den alt__ Mann. ("I see the old man.") β€” accusative masculine, from alt.
Hint: accusative masculine after 'den' β†’ weak -en.
Quick check

Strong dative

?Complete: Ich koche mit ___ Wein. ("I cook with good wine.") β€” no article, dative masculine, from gut.
Sort it

Weak or strong?

Sort each phrase by which declension the adjective uses.

Weak (after der-word)

Strong (no article)

Type it

Your turn β€” a full phrase

5Translate "a good book" (accusative object of "I'm reading", neuter Buch) into German.
Hint: neuter, endingless 'ein' β†’ the adjective shows the strong -es. Same in nom. and acc.
Recap

Your adjective-ending toolkit

Weak (after der/die/das): -e in the five soft slots, -en everywhere else.

Mixed (after ein/kein/mein): like weak, but the three endingless slots (masc. nom., neut. nom./acc.) show the strong -er / -es.

Strong (no article): the adjective mirrors der/die/das (-er/-e/-es, dat. -em/-er/-em); masc./neut. genitive is -en.

Rule: the case must show once β€” if the article shows it, the adjective relaxes; if not, the adjective carries it.

Cluster 4 rebuilds the verb: the full tense system β€” present, perfect, PrΓ€teritum, pluperfect and future. Press Finish.

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