German Cases (Nominative, Accusative, Dative, Genitive) Explained Simply

Introduction

For many learners, mastering the four German cases—the nominative, accusative, dative, and genitive—is one of the biggest challenges.
At first, they may seem complicated, but don’t worry: with simple rules and practical examples, everything becomes much clearer.

In this article, we’ll demystify German cases step by step.

1. The Nominative Case (Nominativ) – The Subject

When to use it?
The nominative is used for the subject of the sentence (the one doing the action).

📌Example:

• Der Hund schläft. → The dog is sleeping.
  (Der Hund = subject → nominative)

2. The Accusative Case (Akkusativ) – The Direct Object

👉When to use it?
The accusative is used for the direct object (the person or thing receiving the action).

📌Example:

• Ich sehe den Hund. → I see the dog.
  (den Hund = direct object → accusative)

Common verbs with accusative: haben (to have), sehen (to see), brauchen (to need).

3. The Dative Case (Dativ) – The Indirect Object

👉When to use it?
The dative is used for the indirect object (to whom or for whom the action is done).

📌Example:

• Ich gebe dem Kind ein Buch. → I give the child a book.
  (dem Kind = to the child → dative)

Common verbs with dative: helfen (to help), danken (to thank), gefallen (to please).

4. The Genitive Case (Genitiv) – Possession

👉When to use it?
The genitive expresses possession or a relationship between two nouns.

📌Example:

• Das Auto des Mannes. → The man’s car.
  (des Mannes = of the man → genitive)

Note: In spoken German, the genitive is often replaced by von + dative.
Example: Das Auto von dem Mann instead of des Mannes.

5. Comparative Example with “der Hund”

• Nominative: Der Hund schläft. → The dog is sleeping.

• Accusative: Ich sehe den Hund. → I see the dog.

• Dative: Ich gebe dem Hund Wasser. → I give the dog water.

• Genitive: Das Haus des Hundes. → The dog’s house.

6. Summary Table of Definite Articles

Case	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
Nominative	der	die	das	die
Accusative	den	die	das	die
Dative	dem	der	dem	den
Genitive	des	der	des	der

Conclusion

Quick reminder:

• Nominative = who does the action (subject)

• Accusative = who/what receives the action (direct object)

• Dative = to/for whom (indirect object)

• Genitive = possession

With practice and daily examples, German cases will soon feel natural!

Call-to-Action (CTA)

✨Want to learn German easily?
Sign up today for one of our German courses and make fast progress! 🇩🇪