Here are 100 everyday German nouns with der, die or das, from die Zeit (time) and der Tag (day) to das Haus (house) and die Welt (world). Learn these five first: die Zeit, der Tag, das Kind (child), der Freund (friend) and das Haus. The patterns below help you guess a noun's gender and its plural.
- Words
- 100 nouns, each with der, die or das
- Capital letters
- Every German noun starts with one
- Plural article
- Always die
- Level
- A1
100 everyday German nouns
Every noun is listed with its article, and every German noun is written with a capital letter. This is the nouns pack the Contos web app uses for flashcard review.
| German | English |
|---|---|
| die Zeit | time |
| der Tag | day |
| die Woche | week |
| der Monat | month |
| das Jahr | year |
| der Morgen | morning |
| die Nacht | night |
| die Minute | minute |
| das Wochenende | weekend |
| der Geburtstag | birthday |
| der Urlaub | holiday |
| die Person | person |
| der Mann | man |
| die Frau | woman |
| das Kind | child |
| der Junge | boy |
| das Mädchen | girl |
| der Freund | friend |
| die Familie | family |
| die Mutter | mother |
| der Vater | father |
| der Nachbar | neighbour |
| der Lehrer | teacher |
| der Arzt | doctor |
| das Haus | house |
| die Wohnung | flat |
| das Zimmer | room |
| die Tür | door |
| das Fenster | window |
| der Tisch | table |
| der Stuhl | chair |
| das Bett | bed |
| die Küche | kitchen |
| der Garten | garden |
| die Uhr | clock |
| der Schlüssel | key |
| die Tasche | bag |
| das Buch | book |
| der Brief | letter |
| das Foto | photo |
| die Landkarte | map |
| das Telefon | phone |
| der Computer | computer |
| das Geschenk | gift |
| das Ding | thing |
| das Geld | money |
| die Stadt | city |
| das Dorf | village |
| die Straße | street |
| der Laden | shop |
| der Park | park |
| die Schule | school |
| die Bibliothek | library |
| das Kino | cinema |
| das Hotel | hotel |
| der Bahnhof | station |
| das Büro | office |
| das Auto | car |
| der Bus | bus |
| der Zug | train |
| das Flugzeug | aeroplane |
| das Fahrrad | bicycle |
| die Fahrkarte | ticket |
| die Reise | trip |
| das Meer | sea |
| der Strand | beach |
| der Fluss | river |
| der See | lake |
| der Berg | mountain |
| der Wald | forest |
| der Baum | tree |
| die Blume | flower |
| der Himmel | sky |
| die Sonne | sun |
| der Stern | star |
| der Hund | dog |
| die Katze | cat |
| der Vogel | bird |
| der Name | name |
| das Wort | word |
| die Sprache | language |
| die Frage | question |
| die Antwort | answer |
| die Geschichte | story |
| das Lied | song |
| der Film | film |
| das Spiel | game |
| die Party | party |
| die Idee | idea |
| die Arbeit | work |
| das Leben | life |
| die Welt | world |
| das Land | country |
| der Ort | place |
| die Hand | hand |
| das Auge | eye |
| der Kopf | head |
| das Herz | heart |
| der Traum | dream |
| die Nachricht | message |
Can you guess der, die or das from the word?
Often, yes. Endings are the best clue, and this list shows the main ones at work. They are tendencies, not laws, so keep learning each noun with its article.
| Clue | Usually | From the list |
|---|---|---|
| ends in -e | die | die Woche, die Minute, die Familie, die Straße, die Schule, die Sprache, die Frage, die Reise |
| ends in -ung, -heit, -keit, -schaft | die | die Wohnung |
| ends in -chen or -lein | das | das Mädchen |
| starts with Ge- | das | das Geschenk |
| a male person | der | der Mann, der Vater, der Junge, der Lehrer, der Nachbar |
| a female person | die | die Frau, die Mutter |
| a day, month or season | der | der Tag, der Monat (and der Montag, der Mai, der Sommer) |
The exceptions in this list are worth knowing: der Name, der Junge and das Auge end in -e but are not feminine. Das Kind is neuter whatever the child's sex, and das Mädchen (girl) is neuter because every noun ending in -chen is, even when it means a person.
Der becomes den: the one change to learn first
When a noun is the object of a sentence (the accusative), only the masculine article changes: der becomes den, ein becomes einen. Die and das stay the same. After in, auf and an, a location takes the dative: dem for der and das, der for die.
Auf dem Tisch liegt ein Brief.How do German nouns make their plural?
There is no single plural ending like English -s. There are five common patterns, and the article in the plural is always die. Learn the plural with the noun, the way a German dictionary lists it: das Buch, die Bücher.
| Pattern | Examples from the list |
|---|---|
| add -e | der Tag → die Tage, der Freund → die Freunde, das Jahr → die Jahre, der Film → die Filme |
| umlaut + -e | die Stadt → die Städte, der Zug → die Züge, die Hand → die Hände, der Baum → die Bäume |
| add -er, with umlaut if possible | das Kind → die Kinder, das Buch → die Bücher, das Haus → die Häuser, der Mann → die Männer, das Land → die Länder |
| add -n or -en | die Frau → die Frauen, die Woche → die Wochen, die Tür → die Türen, die Blume → die Blumen |
| no ending, sometimes an umlaut | das Zimmer → die Zimmer, das Fenster → die Fenster, der Lehrer → die Lehrer, der Vater → die Väter, der Garten → die Gärten |
| add -s (mostly borrowed words) | das Auto → die Autos, das Foto → die Fotos, das Hotel → die Hotels, die Party → die Partys |
Rough guide: feminine nouns usually take -n or -en; short masculine nouns often take -e, with or without an umlaut; neuter nouns of one syllable often take -er; and nouns ending in -er or -el often add nothing.
Which nouns in the list have two meanings?
Some of the commonest nouns are also the most slippery, because one German word covers two English ones.
- der See is a lake, but die See is the sea, mostly in phrases like an die See fahren (go to the seaside). Das Meer is the usual word for sea.
- der Freund is a friend or a boyfriend, and die Freundin a friend or a girlfriend. Ein Freund von mir makes clear you mean just a friend.
- die Frau is a woman, a wife (meine Frau) and the title Mrs: Frau Weber.
- die Uhr is a clock and a watch, and also gives you o'clock: um drei Uhr.
- die Tasche is a bag and a pocket.
- das Telefon is a phone in general; a mobile is das Handy, a German word that sounds English.
Nachricht, Geschichte: news and history
Die Nachricht is a message, but in the plural die Nachrichten are the news, on television or from a friend:
Ich habe gute Nachrichten.Die Geschichte is a story, and also history. In this choir story both meanings are there at once: a man points at old photographs on the wall of the choir's hall.
„Das ist unsere Geschichte“, sagt er.Meet these nouns in a story: tap any word in a Contos chapter to see its meaning, and it becomes a flashcard.
Read free in your browserFrequently asked questions
Why is das Mädchen neuter?
Because it ends in -chen, a diminutive ending, and every noun with -chen is neuter. Mädchen started life as a "little Magd" (maid). The grammar follows the ending, not the person.
Are all German nouns capitalised?
Yes. Every noun starts with a capital letter, in the middle of a sentence too: Ich habe einen Hund und eine Katze. It makes nouns easy to spot when you read.
What is the plural of Kind?
Die Kinder. Many neuter nouns of one syllable add -er, often with an umlaut: das Buch, die Bücher; das Haus, die Häuser.
What is the difference between der See and die See?
Der See is a lake, such as der Bodensee. Die See is the sea, used mainly in set phrases such as an der See (at the seaside). In everyday German, the sea is usually das Meer.