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Adjectives (Adjektive)

Adjectives are words that describe or modify nouns (people, places, things, or ideas). In German, adjectives are essential for adding detail and color to your language.

A German adjective can be used in two primary ways:

  1. Predicate Adjectives: Used after a verb (like sein "to be" or werden "to become"). This form is simple: the adjective never takes an ending.

    • Das Auto ist schnell. (The car is fast.)
    • Die Frau ist freundlich. (The woman is friendly.)

  2. Attributive Adjectives: Used before a noun. This is where German grammar becomes more complex. In this position, the adjective must take an ending that matches the noun's gender, case, and number.

    • Das schnelle Auto... (The fast car...)
    • Die freundliche Frau... (The friendly woman...)

Like in English, German adjectives can also be used to compare things.

  • schnell (fast) -> schneller (faster) -> am schnell**sten (fastest)

In This Section

To master German adjectives, you need to understand these two key concepts:

  • Adjective Declension This is the complete guide to the "three-table system" (weak, mixed, and strong) for adding the correct endings to adjectives that come before a noun.

  • Adjective Comparison Learn how to form the comparative (-er) and superlative (-sten) to compare nouns, including common irregular forms like gut, besser, am besten (good, better, best).