German Dative Case with Example

Master the German Dative Case with Example to enhance your grammar skills. Learn when and how to use it effectively in sentences for accurate communication.

 

1. Masculine Nouns in the Dative Case

For masculine nouns, the definite article changes to dem and the indefinite article changes to einem.

Definite Article: “Der Mann” (the man) becomes “dem Mann” in the dative case.

Example: “Ich gebe dem Mann das Buch.” (I am giving the book to the man.)

Indefinite Article: “Ein Mann” (a man) becomes “einem Mann” in the dative.

Example: “Ich gebe einem Mann das Buch.” (I am giving the book to a man.)

 

2. Feminine Nouns in the Dative Case

For feminine nouns, the definite article changes to der and the indefinite article changes to einer.

Definite Article: “Die Frau” (the woman) becomes “der Frau” in the dative case.

Example: “Ich gebe der Frau das Buch.” (I am giving the book to the woman.)

Indefinite Article: “Eine Frau” (a woman) becomes “einer Frau” in the dative.

Example: “Ich gebe einer Frau das Buch.” (I am giving the book to a woman.)

 

Note: Learn how to use German Personal Pronomen For Dative Cases. Master their correct forms and improve your fluency in everyday conversations.

 

3. Neuter Nouns in the Dative Case

For neuter nouns, the definite article changes to dem and the indefinite article changes to einem.

Definite Article: “Das Kind” (the child) becomes “dem Kind” in the dative.

Example: “Ich gebe dem Kind das Buch.” (I am giving the book to the child.)

Indefinite Article: “Ein Kind” (a child) becomes “einem Kind” in the dative.

Example: “Ich gebe einem Kind das Buch.” (I am giving the book to a child.)

 

4. Plural Nouns in the Dative Case

For plural nouns, the definite article changes to den. There is no indefinite article for plural nouns in German, but when using dative with plural nouns, an -n is often added to the end of the noun if it doesn’t already have one.

Definite Article: “Die Kinder” (the children) becomes “den Kindern” in the dative.

Example: “Ich gebe den Kindern das Buch.” (I am giving the book to the children.)

No Indefinite Article: There is no indefinite article for plurals in the dative, so we simply use the noun in the plural dative form.

Example: “Ich gebe Kindern das Buch.” (I am giving the book to children.)

 

Summary of Dative Articles in German

Masculine: der → dem, ein → einem

Feminine: die → der, eine → einer

Neuter: das → dem, ein → einem

Plural: die → den (with an added “-n” if the noun doesn’t already end in “-n”)

 

Do watch our latest video on German Language Course in Pune

Author:

Siddhi Ghale
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