Adjective Declension (Adjektivdeklination)

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In German, adjective declension is the system of adding endings to adjectives that come before a noun. This ending changes to match the gender, number, and case of the noun.

The specific ending you use depends entirely on the type of word (or lack of word) that comes before the adjective.

There are three main declension patterns:

1. Weak Declension: After a definite article (der, die, das, etc.).
2. Mixed Declension: After an indefinite article (ein, eine) or a possessive (mein, dein, etc.).
3. Strong Declension: After no article.

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1. Weak Declension (after Definite Articles)

This is the "easy" set of endings. Because the definite article (like der or dem) already clearly shows the gender, case, and number, the adjective only needs a "weak" ending.

Rule: The ending is -en almost everywhere. The only exceptions are the five "e-spots" in the nominative singular and accusative (feminine and neuter).

Case (Kasus)	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
Nominative	der gute	die gute	das gute	die guten
Accusative	den guten	die gute	das gute	die guten
Dative	dem guten	der guten	dem guten	den guten
Genitive	des guten	der guten	des guten	der guten

Examples: * Ich sehe den alten Mann. (I see the old man.) * Das Auto der reichen Frau ist rot. (The car of the rich woman is red.) * Wir helfen den neuen Studenten. (We help the new students.)

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2. Mixed Declension (after Indefinite Articles)

This pattern is used after ein-, kein-, mein-, dein-, sein-, ihr-, unser-, euer-.

Rule: These endings are "mixed" because they are mostly weak (like the table above), but they must be strong in the few places where the indefinite article doesn't have a strong ending itself (Nominative Masculine/Neuter, and Accusative Neuter).

Case (Kasus)	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural*
Nominative	ein guter	eine gute	ein gutes	keine guten*
Accusative	einen guten	eine gute	ein gutes	keine guten*
Dative	einem guten	einer guten	einem guten	keinen guten*
Genitive	eines guten	einer guten	eines guten	keiner guten*

*Note: The plural of "ein" (a) doesn't exist. The table shows the endings for "kein-" (no) or "mein-" (my), which follow the weak pattern in the plural.

Examples: * Ein guter Mann liest. (A good man reads.) * Ich habe einen neuen Tisch. (I have a new table.) * Sie kauft ein schnelles Auto. (She buys a fast car.)

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3. Strong Declension (after No Article)

This pattern is used when there is no article at all (e.g., "fresh milk," "good wine").

Rule: Because there is no article to show the gender, case, or number, the adjective must do all the work. Its endings will look very similar to the definite article endings (e.g., der -> -er, dem -> -em).

Case (Kasus)	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
Nominative	guter	gute	gutes	gute
Accusative	guten	gute	gutes	gute
Dative	gutem	guter	gutem	guten
Genitive	guten	guter	guten	guter

(Note the Genitive Masculine/Neuter exception: it's -en, not -es, to avoid a double "s" sound with the noun, e.g., guten Weines.)

Examples: * Ich trinke kalte Milch. (I drink cold milk.) * Guter Wein ist teuer. (Good wine is expensive.) * Er gibt armen Leuten Geld. (He gives money to poor people.)

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When Not to Decline Adjectives

This is very important: Adjectives only take these endings when they come before the noun they describe (attributive adjectives).

Adjectives that come after the noun and are separated by a verb (like "is," "seems," "becomes") never take an ending. These are called predicate adjectives.

• Der Mann ist alt. (The man is old.)
• Die Frau ist freundlich. (The woman is friendly.)
• Das Auto war schnell. (The car was fast.)

In all these cases, the adjective alt, freundlich, and schnell has no ending.

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