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The case system is a crucial aspect of German grammar. It determines the function of a noun in a sentence and affects the form of articles, adjectives, and pronouns. This can seem complicated, but we’ll start with the two most important cases: the nominative and the accusative.

What is a «Case»?

A case indicates the grammatical role of a noun or pronoun in a sentence. Think of it as a label that tells you what the noun is doing in the sentence. German has four cases: nominative, accusative, dative, and genitive.

The Nominative Case (Nominativ): The Subject

The nominative case is used for the subject of the sentence. The subject is the person or thing performing the action of the verb. In a simple sentence, the subject is who or what is doing the verb.

Der Mann liest. (The man reads.) – «Der Mann» is the subject; he is doing the reading.

Die Frau singt. (The woman sings.) – «Die Frau» is the subject; she is doing the singing.

Das Kind spielt. (The child plays.) – «Das Kind» is the subject; it is doing the playing.

When a noun is in the nominative case, the article takes its basic, «dictionary» form. This means:

If the noun is masculine, the definite article (the) is «der.»

If the noun is feminine, the definite article (the) is «die.»

If the noun is neuter, the definite article (the) is «das.»

If the noun is plural, the definite article (the) is «die.»

The Accusative Case (Akkusativ): The Direct Object

The accusative case is primarily used for the direct object of the sentence. The direct object is the person or thing that receives the action of the verb. It’s what the subject is acting upon.

Der Mann liest das Buch. (The man reads the book.) – «Das Buch» is the direct object; it is being read.

Die Frau singt ein Lied. (The woman sings a song.) – «Ein Lied» is the direct object; it is being sung.

Das Kind isst den Apfel. (The child eats the apple.) – «Den Apfel» is the direct object; it is being eaten.

How the Accusative Changes Articles

The accusative case primarily affects the masculine articles. Here’s how the articles change:

Definite Articles (The): The masculine definite article «der» changes to «den» in the accusative. The feminine definite article «die,» the neuter definite article «das,» and the plural definite article «die» all remain the same in the accusative.

Indefinite Articles (A/An): The masculine indefinite article «ein» changes to «einen» in the accusative. The feminine indefinite article «eine» and the neuter indefinite article «ein» remain the same in the accusative. There is no plural indefinite article in German.

Pronouns in the Accusative

Personal pronouns also change in the accusative case. Here’s how each pronoun changes from the nominative to the accusative:

«ich» (I) becomes «mich» (me)

«du» (you – informal, singular) becomes «dich» (you – informal, singular)

«er» (he) becomes «ihn» (him)

«sie» (she) remains «sie» (her) – Note: The accusative and nominative forms are the same for «she.»

«es» (it) remains «es» (it) – Note: The accusative and nominative forms are the same for «it.»

«wir» (we) becomes «uns» (us)

«ihr» (you – informal, plural) becomes «euch» (you – informal, plural)

«sie» (they) remains «sie» (them) – Note: The accusative and nominative forms are the same for «they.»

«Sie» (you – formal) remains «Sie» (you – formal) – Note: The accusative and nominative forms are the same for formal «you.»

Examples with Accusative Pronouns:

Ich sehe ihn. (ihh zay-e ihn) – I see him.

Sie liebt mich. (zee leept mihh) – She loves me.

Wir helfen euch. (veer hel-fen oihh) – We help you (plural, informal).

How to Identify the Accusative Object

A simple trick to finding the direct object is to ask «Whom?» or «What?» after the verb.

The man reads what? The book. (Das Buch – accusative)

She loves whom? Me. (Mich – accusative)

Word Bank

Nominativ (no-mi-na-teef) – Nominative

Akkusativ (ak-ku-za-teef) – Accusative

Subjekt (zoop-yekt) – Subject

Objekt (ob-yekt) – Object

der (dare) – the (masculine, nominative)

den (den) – the (masculine, accusative)

ein (ain) – a (masculine/neuter, nominative)

einen (ai-nen) – a (masculine, accusative)

mich (mihh) – me (accusative)

dich (dihh) – you (accusative, informal)

ihn (een) – him (accusative)

Exercises

Identify the nominative subject and the accusative object in the following sentences:

Die Frau kauft einen Apfel. (The woman buys an apple.)

Der Mann sieht das Auto. (The man sees the car.)

Das Kind liest ein Buch. (The child reads a book.)

Change the articles to the correct form in the accusative case:

Ich esse ______ Apfel. (der Apfel)

Sie sieht ______ Frau. (die Frau)

Wir kaufen ______ Haus. (das Haus)

Fill in the blanks with the correct accusative pronoun:

Ich liebe ______. (du)

Sie sieht ______. (er)

Wir helfen ______. (ihr)

Translate the following sentences into German, paying attention to the accusative case:

I see the man.

She loves him.

We are buying a car.

He helps me.

Rewrite the sentences from exercise 1 using pronouns instead of nouns for both the subject and object, applying the accusative case correctly.