German TutorAndroid app ↗After sein: no ending
When an adjective comes after verbs like sein, it normally stays in its base form: “Das Haus ist groß.”
DESCRIBING THINGS · A1–A2
Adjektive: Make descriptions sound natural.
Learn where German adjectives go, when they take endings, and how to compare two things.
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THE SHORT VERSION
Adjektive, made clear.
Start with these three ideas. Then test them in real German sentences.
Before a noun: add an ending
An adjective before a noun takes an ending based on article, gender, number, and case. Compare “ein großes Haus” with “der große Hund”.
Compare with -er
The comparative is often formed with -er: “schnell” → “schneller”. Some common adjectives also change vowels: “groß” → “größer”.
SEE THE DIFFERENCE
Der Hund ist klein. → no adjective ending after ist
ein kleiner Hund → -er before masculine nominative noun
der kleine Hund → -e after der in nominative
The examples above use nominative singular. Adjective endings change in other cases.A CLOSER LOOK
Choose the ending, step by step
Before you add an adjective ending, ask three questions: Is the adjective before a noun? What case, gender and number is the noun? Which article, if any, comes before the adjective? The article and adjective share the job of showing the noun’s grammatical form.
1 · Position changes the adjective
After a verb: “Der Kaffee ist heiß.” The adjective has no case ending. Before a noun: “ein heißer Kaffee.” Now the adjective takes an ending. The same distinction applies to “Die Suppe schmeckt gut” versus “eine gute Suppe”.
2 · After a definite article
The definite article already carries much of the case information. In nominative singular the adjective normally ends in -e; masculine accusative and all dative examples below take -en.
| Case | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | der kleine Hund | die kleine Katze | das kleine Kind | die kleinen Hunde |
| Accusative | den kleinen Hund | die kleine Katze | das kleine Kind | die kleinen Hunde |
| Dative | dem kleinen Hund | der kleinen Katze | dem kleinen Kind | den kleinen Hunden |
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3 · After ein, eine or mein
Where ein has no visible gender ending, the adjective shows it: ein kleiner Hund, ein kleines Kind. The feminine article already signals gender: eine kleine Katze. In masculine accusative, both forms change: einen kleinen Hund. Dative adjectives after indefinite articles end in -en.
| Case | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | ein kleiner Hund | eine kleine Katze | ein kleines Kind |
| Accusative | einen kleinen Hund | eine kleine Katze | ein kleines Kind |
| Dative | einem kleinen Hund | einer kleinen Katze | einem kleinen Kind |
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Mein and kein follow the same singular pattern. With no article, the adjective carries more information: “frischer Kaffee”, “frisches Brot”.
4 · Compare things
Use the comparative with als: “Dieser Zug ist schneller als jener.” For the highest degree, use am …-sten after a verb: “Dieser Zug ist am schnellsten.” Common changes: groß → größer → am größten and gut → besser → am besten. A comparative before a noun still needs an adjective ending: “ein schnellerer Zug”.
Try this: Quick check: “Ich sehe den kleinen Hund.” The dog is a masculine accusative object; after den, the adjective ends in -en.
For a fuller reference, see the Goethe-Institut German grammar overview ↗.
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Adjektive, without the confusion.
Do German adjectives always need an ending?
No. After sein, they usually have no ending. Before a noun, they usually do.
Why is it ein kleiner Hund?
With ein and a masculine nominative noun, the adjective carries the -er ending.
How do I say bigger?
The comparative of groß is größer, with an umlaut and -er.