German declensions for B1: complete guide (tables + tricks)

1. The 4 cases in 60 seconds

German has 4 cases: nominative, accusative, dative, genitive. Each case matches a grammatical function. The word's form changes depending on its role in the sentence.

2. The nominative (Nominativ) — the default case

The nominative is the case of the subject. It's also the default case in the dictionary. When you learn a German noun, you learn its nominative form.

Definite articles in the nominative

• Masculine: der Hund (the dog)
• Feminine: die Katze (the cat)
• Neuter: das Kind (the child)
• Plural: die Hunde (the dogs)

Example

Der Hund schläft. (The dog sleeps.)
Die Katze ist klein. (The cat is small.)
Das Kind spielt. (The child plays.)

3. The accusative (Akkusativ) — the direct object

The accusative is the case of the direct object. You see something: that something is in the accusative.

Definite articles in the accusative

• Masculine: den Hund (← der changes to den)
• Feminine: die Katze (unchanged)
• Neuter: das Kind (unchanged)
• Plural: die Hunde (unchanged)

Verbs that take the accusative

Memorize these verbs with their case:

• haben (to have) — Ich habe einen Hund
• sehen (to see) — Ich sehe den Mann
• kaufen (to buy) — Ich kaufe einen Apfel
• essen (to eat) — Ich esse einen Kuchen
• trinken (to drink) — Ich trinke einen Kaffee
• brauchen (to need) — Ich brauche ein Buch
• lesen (to read) — Ich lese eine Zeitung

4. The dative (Dativ) — the indirect object

The dative is the case of the indirect object. You give to someone, you call someone: that "someone" is in the dative.

Definite articles in the dative

• Masculine: dem Hund (← der → dem)
• Feminine: der Katze (← die → der)
• Neuter: dem Kind (← das → dem)
• Plural: den Hunden (← die → den + -n on the noun)

Verbs that take the dative (memorize the list)

• helfen (to help) — Ich helfe dem Mann
• gefallen (to please) — Das gefällt mir
• antworten (to answer) — Ich antworte der Frau
• gehören (to belong) — Das Buch gehört dem Lehrer
• danken (to thank) — Ich danke dir
• folgen (to follow) — Ich folge dem Auto
• schmecken (to taste good to) — Das Essen schmeckt mir

5. The genitive (Genitiv) — possession

The genitive expresses possession or belonging. In English, it's "of" or 's. In everyday spoken German, the genitive is often replaced by the dative with von.

Definite articles in the genitive

• Masculine: des Hundes (+ -es on short nouns, -s on long nouns)
• Feminine: der Katze (noun unchanged)
• Neuter: des Kindes (+ -es / -s)
• Plural: der Hunde (noun unchanged)

Example

Das Auto des Mannes. (The man's car.)
↔ informal: Das Auto vom Mann. (dative + von)

6. Full table of definite and indefinite articles

Definite articles (der, die, das)

Indefinite articles (ein, eine)

Good news: definite and indefinite articles have exactly the same endings. der → dem, ein → einem. The root changes, the ending is identical.

Possessives (mein, dein, sein, ihr…)

Possessives (mein, dein, sein, ihr, unser, euer) follow the ein pattern exactly. So:

• nominative masculine: mein Hund (like ein)
• accusative masculine: meinen Hund (like einen)
• dative feminine: meiner Frau (like einer)

7. Prepositions sorted by case

Prepositions always with the accusative

Mnemonic "DOGFU": durch, ohne, gegen, für, um.

• durch (through) — durch den Park
• ohne (without) — ohne meinen Bruder
• gegen (against) — gegen die Wand
• für (for) — für dich
• um (around) — um den Tisch

Prepositions always with the dative

Mnemonic "MAVNZSB" or sing it: «mit, aus, von, nach, zu, seit, bei».

• mit (with) — mit dem Auto
• aus (from, out of) — aus dem Haus
• von (from, of) — von der Arbeit
• nach (after, to) — nach dem Essen
• zu (to, at) — zu meinem Freund
• seit (since) — seit einem Jahr
• bei (at, near) — bei meinen Eltern

Two-way prepositions (Wechselpräpositionen)

9 prepositions can take either accusative or dative depending on meaning:

an, auf, in, vor, hinter, über, unter, neben, zwischen

8. Adjective declension at B1

German adjectives change based on gender, number, case, and presence of an article. It's the hardest piece of B1 grammar.

The 3-column rule (strong / mixed / weak declension)

Case 1 — With definite article (weak declension): the adjective takes -e in the nominative singular and accusative feminine/neuter/plural, -en everywhere else.

der gute Mann • die gute Frau • das gute Kind • die guten Kinder
(accusative) den guten Mann • die gute Frau • das gute Kind

Case 2 — With indefinite article (mixed declension): the adjective takes the definite article's ending where ein doesn't mark the case.

ein guter Mann (← er from der) • eine gute Frau • ein gutes Kind (← as from das)

Case 3 — No article (strong declension): the adjective takes the definite article's ending in all cases.

guter Wein • gute Milch • gutes Bier • gute Weine

9. 5 mnemonic tricks so you never get them wrong

Trick 1 — The "R-S-M-N" rule

In the dative, article endings are: M-R-M-N (masculine dem, feminine der, neuter dem, plural den). In the genitive: S-R-S-R (des, der, des, der).

Trick 2 — The MAVNZSB song for the dative

Sing in your head: "Mit-Aus-Von-Nach-Zu-Seit-Bei". These are all prepositions always followed by the dative. When you see any of these 7 words, the dative follows automatically.

Trick 3 — DOGFU for the accusative

"Durch-Ohne-Gegen-Für-Um". The 5 prepositions always followed by the accusative. Memorize it as one word.

Trick 4 — Learn the verb with its case

Never memorize a German verb alone. Always: helfen + dative, kaufen + accusative, warten auf + accusative. Once associated, you don't get it wrong.

Trick 5 — The "-n" test for dative plurals

In the dative plural, the noun always takes a final -n (unless it already has one in the plural): den Kindern, den Häusern, den Hunden. It's the only modification of the noun in the dative.

10. Frequently asked questions

How many cases are there in German?

German has 4 cases: nominative (subject), accusative (direct object), dative (indirect object) and genitive (possession). For B1, actively master the first three and recognize the genitive.

How do I know which case to use in German?

The case depends on the verb or preposition. Some verbs take accusative (haben, sehen, kaufen), others dative (helfen, gefallen, antworten). Some prepositions always take dative (mit, aus, von, nach, zu, seit, bei), others accusative (durch, ohne, gegen, für, um).

What's the difference between der, die, das in the accusative?

In the accusative, only the masculine changes: der becomes den. Feminine stays die, neuter stays das, plural stays die. That's THE rule to learn first.

Do I need the genitive at Goethe B1?

The genitive is not actively required at Goethe B1 — you can get by without producing it. You must be able to recognize it when reading. In spoken German, native speakers often use dative + von instead.

How do I memorize declensions easily?

Three tricks: (1) learn endings by case, not by gender. (2) DOGFU mnemonic for accusative, MAVNZSB for dative. (3) Associate every verb and preposition with its case the moment you learn the word.

Why does «helfen» take the dative, not the accusative?

It's a German quirk: helfen, like danken, antworten, gehören, folgen, schmecken, takes the dative. Etymologically, these verbs express an action oriented toward someone ("I render a service to someone"), not an action on someone. There's no rule that predicts it — you have to memorize the list.