CASES · A2–B2

Genitiv: Show who something belongs to.

Understand wessen?, des Mannes and der Frau. Learn the most useful genitive article patterns with clear examples.

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THE SHORT VERSION

Genitiv, made clear.

Start with these three ideas. Then test them in real German sentences.

Ask ‘whose?’

The genitive often shows a relationship or possession: ‘Das Auto des Mannes’ means ‘the man’s car’. The question is ‘Wessen Auto?’

Change the article

Masculine and neuter singular use ‘des’; feminine singular and all plurals use ‘der’. Masculine and neuter nouns usually add -s or -es.

Meet genitive prepositions

In standard written German, ‘wegen’ and ‘trotz’ often take genitive: ‘wegen des Wetters’, ‘trotz des Regens’. Everyday speech may use dative in some contexts.

SEE THE DIFFERENCE

Das Auto des Mannes → The man’s car: masculine genitive.

Die Tasche der Frau → The woman’s bag: feminine genitive.

The question ‘wessen?’ helps identify the possessive relationship.

A CLOSER LOOK

Possession and written style

The genitive often links two nouns. It is common in writing and in set expressions, though spoken German may sometimes prefer von plus dative.

Article pattern

Genitive definite articles
Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
des Mannes	der Frau	des Kindes	der Kinder

Swipe the table sideways to see all columns →

Masculine and neuter singular nouns commonly add -s or -es; feminine and plural nouns do not add a special genitive ending in these examples.

Compare two ways to say “of”

Das Auto des Mannes is a genitive phrase. Das Auto von dem Mann uses von plus dative and is common in speech. In formal writing, prepositions such as trotz and wegen are commonly followed by genitive.

Try this: For a question, use “Wessen?”: Wessen Auto ist das?

For a fuller reference, see the Goethe-Institut German grammar overview ↗.

YOUR GENITIV CHALLENGE

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QUICK ANSWERS

Genitiv, without the confusion.

What does Genitiv mean?

Genitiv is the German genitive case. It often expresses possession or a close relationship between nouns.

When do I use des or der?

Use des with masculine and neuter singular nouns, and der with feminine singular and plural nouns.

Does the noun change too?

Masculine and neuter singular nouns normally add -s or -es: ‘des Mannes’, ‘des Kindes’.