Der, die and das all mean “the”. Which one you use depends on the gender of the noun.
der Hund, die Stadt, das Buch the dog, the city, the book
German Grammar
German grammar is easier when you learn one topic at a time and practise it right away. This page lists the A1 and A2 topics by level, each with its rule, a guide in plain English, and a game or a quiz.
Start with A1 grammar
21 topics. No account needed.
Quick grammar check1 / 8
A1Der, die, das (articles)
blank Hund schläft.
The dog is sleeping.
Pick the word that fits the gap.
Eight questions, one per topic. At the end you see which topics to read first.
German Grammar by Level
The topics in the order to learn them.
A1 Beginner grammar
At A1 you learn how a simple German sentence works: the article of a noun, the ending of a verb, and where the verb goes.
A2 Elementary grammar
At A2 the sentences get longer. You learn the dative case, prepositions that change the case, how to compare things, and how to join two sentences.
B1 Intermediate grammar
At B1 you build sentences with more than one clause, and you need the A1 and A2 grammar to be automatic.
This site has no grammar guides for B1 yet. Until it does, these help most:
German Grammar Topics
Each topic has its main rule, one example, and every way to practise it on this site.
Nouns and articles
The gender of a noun, its plural, and the small words that stand in front of it.
4 topics
German has several plural endings, and some plurals add an umlaut. Learn the plural together with the noun.
das Haus, die Häuser the house, the houses
The ending of dies- copies the last letter of the article.
der Käse, dieser Käse the cheese, this cheese
Jed- (every) goes with one thing, so it uses a singular noun. Alle (all) goes with many things, so it uses a plural noun.
Jede Wohnung im Haus hat einen Balkon. Every flat in the building has a balcony.
Verbs and tenses
How a verb changes with the subject, and how to talk about the past.
3 topics
The verb changes its ending to match the subject. The stem carries the meaning, and the ending tells you who is doing it.
ich spiele, du spielst, er spielt I play, you play, he plays
Conjugate haben or sein for the subject, and put the past participle at the end of the sentence.
Ich habe Pizza gegessen. I ate pizza.
German puts zu + infinitive at the very end of the sentence.
Ich habe vergessen, Milch zu kaufen. I forgot to buy milk.
Sentence structure
Where the verb goes, in a simple sentence and in a longer one.
3 topics
In a German main clause, the conjugated verb always sits in position 2.
Heute gehe ich ins Kino. Today I go to the cinema.
After weil, the verb goes to the end. After deshalb, the verb comes next. Denn changes nothing.
Ich trinke Tee, weil ich keinen Kaffee mag. I drink tea because I don’t like coffee.
In a wenn clause, the conjugated verb goes at the very end.
Ich trinke einen Kaffee, wenn ich müde bin. I drink a coffee when I’m tired.
Cases
Why der becomes den or dem, and which verbs ask for the dative.
3 topics
A case shows what job a noun does in a sentence. You see the case on the article.
Ich sehe den Hund. I see the dog.
A small group of common verbs, such as helfen, always takes the dative, even where English uses a plain object.
Ich helfe dir. I help you.
To say something is too much for you, use: thing + sein + person in the dative + zu + adjective.
Das ist mir zu teuer. That’s too expensive for me.
Prepositions
Small words for place and time, and the case each one takes.
3 topics
Clock times take um, days and dates take am, and months and seasons take im.
um 3 Uhr, am Montag, im Juli at 3 o’clock, on Monday, in July
Sentences that answer Wo? (where) or Woher? (where from) almost always use the dative.
Ich bin im Supermarkt. I’m inside the supermarket.
Two-way prepositions take the accusative when something moves to a new place, and the dative when it stays in one place.
Ich gehe in den Park. Ich bin im Park. I’m going into the park. I’m in the park.
Adjectives
The ending an adjective takes before a noun, and how to compare things.
2 topics
Add -er for the comparative. For the superlative, put am in front and add -sten to the end.
schnell, schneller, am schnellsten fast, faster, the fastest
Before a noun, an adjective takes an ending. The ending depends on the article, the gender of the noun, and the case.
der rote Pullover, ein roter Pullover the red sweater, a red sweater
Alphabet, numbers and dates
The first things you need before the grammar starts.
3 topics
German has the same 26 letters as English, plus four more: Ä, Ö, Ü and ß.
schon, schön already, beautiful: two different words
Numbers
A1Two-digit numbers are said backwards: the ones digit first, then the tens.
dreiundzwanzig 23, literally “three-and-twenty”
Use am with days. Use im with months and seasons.
am Montag, im Mai on Monday, in May
More ways to practice
How to learn German grammar
German grammar looks large from the outside, but a beginner needs only a small part of it. Three ideas carry most A1 sentences: every noun has a gender, the verb changes its ending with the subject, and the verb stands in the second position.
So begin with der, die and das, then the present tense, then word order. After that, the four cases explain why der sometimes becomes den or dem, and the Perfekt lets you talk about yesterday.
Read one guide, then practise that one topic until the answers come quickly. Reading a rule takes five minutes. Using it without thinking takes many short rounds of practice, and that is what the games and quizzes on this page are for. Five minutes a few times a day works better than one long session a week.
Do not wait until the grammar is perfect before you read and listen. Easy texts show you the same rules in real sentences. The German reading practice texts come at A1, A2 and B1, so you can read at your level from the first week.
German Grammar FAQ
In what order should I learn German grammar?
Start with the things every sentence needs: the article of a noun (der, die, das), the present tense endings of the verb, and where the verb goes. Then learn the cases, the past tense, and the prepositions. The list by level on this page puts the topics in this order.
Is German grammar hard?
It has more rules than English grammar, but the rules are regular. The parts that take the longest are noun gender and the cases, because English has neither. Both become easier with a lot of short practice. We wrote an honest answer in Is German hard to learn?
How many cases does German have?
Four: nominative, accusative, dative and genitive. The case shows what job a noun does in the sentence, and you see it on the article. At A1 you mostly need the nominative and the accusative. The guide to German cases has the full chart.
How can I practise German grammar for free?
Every topic on this page has free practice: a game, a quiz, or a flashcard deck. You do not need an account. If you do not know where to begin, answer the quick grammar check at the top of this page. It shows which topics to read first.
Which grammar do I need for A1, A2 and B1?
Should I learn grammar or vocabulary first?
Learn them together. A few hundred common words and the A1 grammar are enough to build real sentences. Learn every noun with its article from the first day, because the article is part of the grammar. The German vocabulary lists show the article of every noun.
Not sure where to start?
Answer eight short questions and see which grammar topics to read first.