Dieser, Diese, Dieses: How to Say "This" and "These" in German

Dieser, diese, and dieses mean "this", while plural diese means "these." You need them when you point at something, for example Ich nehme diesen Käse. (I'll take this cheese.) You also use them when you talk about plans, such as diese Woche (this week) and dieses Wochenende (this weekend).

The ending changes with the gender and case of the noun, so dieser, diesen, and diesem can all mean "this." The good news is that the endings copy der, die, and das, so if you know the article, you already know most of the pattern.

Below you'll find a short quiz, the full table of endings, the forms after prepositions, time phrases, "this one" without a noun, dies vs dieses, and the mistakes English speakers usually make.

Try it first

In each sentence, one word is missing, and all the options are forms of dieser (this). Read the short reason after each answer.

If some of those were guesses, the pattern below will make them easy.

The trick: dieser follows der, die, das

The ending of dies- copies the last letter of the article. If you remember only one rule from this post, make it this one.

Article	Form of dies-
der (the)	dieser (this)
die (the)	diese (this)
das (the)	dieses (this)
den (the)	diesen (this)
dem (the)	diesem (this)

For example, der Käse (the cheese) becomes dieser Käse (this cheese). Die Jacke (the jacket) becomes diese Jacke (this jacket), and das Café (the café) becomes dieses Café (this café).

In the plural, die Äpfel (the apples) becomes diese Äpfel (these apples). So diese can mean “this” with a feminine noun or “these” with a plural noun.

If you are still unsure whether a noun is der, die, or das, read our German articles post first. Knowing the article makes these endings much easier.

The endings of dieser

You need different endings because German uses cases. If you want a clear introduction to what Nominativ, Akkusativ, and Dativ mean, our German cases post explains them step by step.

Here is the full table. The nouns show the gender of each column.

Case	Masculine: der Käse	Feminine: die Jacke	Neuter: das Café	Plural: die Äpfel
Nominativ	dieser Käse	diese Jacke	dieses Café	diese Äpfel
Akkusativ	diesen Käse	diese Jacke	dieses Café	diese Äpfel
Dativ	diesem Käse	dieser Jacke	diesem Café	diesen Äpfeln

The Nominativ is usually the subject, the person or thing that does something or is something.

Dieser Käse kommt aus der Schweiz. (This cheese comes from Switzerland.)

Diese Jacke ist zu klein. (This jacket is too small.)

Dieses Café ist am Sonntag immer voll. (This café is always full on Sunday.)

Diese Äpfel sind sehr süß. (These apples are very sweet.)

The Akkusativ is often the direct object, the thing you take, buy, know, or try.

Ich nehme diesen Käse. (I'll take this cheese.)

Ich probiere diese Jacke an. (I'm trying on this jacket.)

Kennst du dieses Café? (Do you know this café?)

Ich kaufe diese Äpfel. (I'm buying these apples.)

At this level, you will mostly meet the Dativ after prepositions such as in, zu, and mit.

Wir sitzen gern in diesem Café. (We like sitting in this café.)

Zu dieser Jacke passt ein roter Schal. (A red scarf goes with this jacket.)

Mit diesen Schuhen kann ich nicht tanzen. (I can't dance in these shoes.)

One useful detail: only masculine forms change between Nominativ and Akkusativ. You say dieser Käse when the cheese is the subject, but diesen Käse when it is the direct object.

Also notice the Dativ plural: the noun adds -n. You say diesen Äpfeln (these apples) and diesen Schuhen (these shoes). If the plural already ends in -n or -s, nothing is added: diesen Cafés (these cafés).

The words jeder, jede, and jedes (every) use the same endings. Our post on jeder and alle can help you connect the two patterns.

Dieser after a preposition

Some prepositions always need the Akkusativ. With für (for), durch (through), ohne (without), and um (around), use these forms:

Gender or number	Akkusativ form
Masculine	diesen
Feminine	diese
Neuter	dieses
Plural	diese

Die Blumen sind für diese Frau. (The flowers are for this woman.)

Wir gehen durch diesen Park. (We walk through this park.)

Ohne dieses Handy bin ich verloren. (Without this phone I am lost.)

Other prepositions need the Dativ. With mit (with), bei (at), zu (to), von (from), aus (from), and seit (since), use these forms:

Gender or number	Dativ form
Masculine	diesem
Feminine	dieser
Neuter	diesem
Plural	diesen

Ich fahre mit diesem Bus zur Arbeit. (I take this bus to work.)

Ich wohne seit drei Jahren in dieser Straße. (I have lived on this street for three years.)

Der Kuchen ist von dieser Bäckerei. (The cake is from this bakery.)

The prepositions in (in) and an (at, on) can use two cases. They take the Dativ for “where?” and the Akkusativ for “where to?” Our Dativ prepositions post explains this rule in more detail.

Das Fest ist in diesem Park. (The festival is in this park.) This answers “Where?”, so it uses Dativ.

Wir gehen in diesen Park. (We are going into this park.) This answers “Where to?”, so it uses Akkusativ.

This weekend, this summer: dieser in time phrases

You will use dies- all the time when you talk about plans. Without a preposition, these time phrases use the Akkusativ.

German phrase	Meaning
diesen Sommer	this summer
diesen Monat	this month
diesen Freitag	this Friday
diese Woche	this week
dieses Wochenende	this weekend
dieses Jahr	this year

Diesen Samstag gibt es ein Stadtfest. (There is a town festival this Saturday.)

Wir fahren diese Woche nach Hamburg. (We are going to Hamburg this week.)

Dieses Jahr möchte ich Spanisch lernen. (This year I want to learn Spanish.)

This explains why you say dieses Wochenende (this weekend). Das Wochenende (the weekend) is neuter, and a time phrase without a preposition uses the Akkusativ. Neuter Akkusativ is dieses.

With an or in, the phrase uses the Dativ instead.

German phrase	Meaning
an diesem Wochenende	this weekend
an diesem Abend	on this evening
in diesem Sommer	this summer
in dieser Woche	this week
in diesem Jahr	this year

An diesem Wochenende besuche ich meine Eltern. (This weekend I'm visiting my parents.)

In diesem Sommer bleiben wir zu Hause. (This summer we are staying at home.)

Diesen Sommer and in diesem Sommer mean the same thing. In everyday speech, the short version without a preposition is more common, so learn that one first.

You may already know am Wochenende (at the weekend). It is short for an dem Wochenende. An diesem Wochenende follows exactly the same pattern, with diesem instead of dem.

For more useful phrases with days, months, and times, see our time expressions post.

Dieser on its own: “this one”

You do not always need to repeat the noun. When everyone knows which thing you mean, dies- can stand on its own. This is especially useful in a shop or at a market.

It still needs the ending of the noun it replaces.

Welcher Käse schmeckt dir? Dieser hier. (Which cheese do you like? This one here.)

Welche Jacke nimmst du? Ich nehme diese. (Which jacket are you taking? I'm taking this one.)

Welchen Kuchen möchtest du? Diesen. (Which cake would you like? This one.)

The word hier (here) makes your pointing clearer. Dieser hier means “this one here.”

Notice that Diesen is masculine Akkusativ in the cake example. The question uses welchen Kuchen, so the answer must use diesen too.

Dies, dieses, or das?

Dies (this) has no ending. It stands alone, and you will see it mostly in written German.

Dies ist der letzte Zug. (This is the last train.)

In spoken German, people usually say das (this, that).

Das ist mein Bruder. (This is my brother.)

Before a neuter noun, always use dieses: dieses Haus (this house), never dies Haus. So dies stands alone, and dieses comes before a noun.

Mistakes English speakers make

English never changes “this” for gender or case, so these mistakes are normal. When you are unsure, think of the article first and copy its ending.

Wrong	Right	Why
Ich nehme dieser Käse.	Ich nehme diesen Käse.	Der Käse is masculine and the object of nehmen, so it needs Akkusativ: diesen.
Diesen Käse ist lecker.	Dieser Käse ist lecker.	The cheese is the subject, so it needs Nominativ: dieser.
Wir sitzen in dieses Café.	Wir sitzen in diesem Café.	“Where?” with in takes Dativ.
Dieses Woche habe ich frei.	Diese Woche habe ich frei.	Die Woche is feminine.
an dieses Wochenende	an diesem Wochenende	An in a time phrase takes Dativ.
mit diese Schuhe	mit diesen Schuhen	Mit takes Dativ, and the Dativ plural adds -n to the noun.

Practise it at your next market visit

Go to a market or shop in your head, or visit a real one. Say five sentences: one with dieser as the subject, one with diesen after nehmen (to take), one with mit or in plus Dativ, one time phrase such as diese Woche, and one short answer such as Ich nehme diese. (I'm taking this one.)

Choosing the right form of dieser starts with knowing whether a noun is der, die, or das. Use the Artikel Drop game to practise that first step.