If you had to bet on a single plural ending for an unknown German noun, -(e)n would be your best bet — and if the noun is feminine, it is close to a sure thing. The -(e)n plural covers roughly 90% of all feminine nouns plus a closed class of masculine nouns called the weak nouns. It has one enormous virtue for learners: it never takes an umlaut, so there is one less thing to remember.
The pattern: -n or -en
The ending is written -(e)n because it surfaces two ways depending on what the singular ends in:
- Nouns ending in -e add only -n: die Lampe → die Lampen.
- Most other nouns add -en: die Uhr → die Uhren.
| Singular ends in… | Add | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -e | -n | die Blume → die Blumen |
| -e | -n | die Lampe → die Lampen |
| consonant | -en | die Frau → die Frauen |
| consonant | -en | die Uhr → die Uhren |
| consonant | -en | die Zeitung → die Zeitungen |
| -in | -nen (double n) | die Lehrerin → die Lehrerinnen |
Sie hat mir Blumen zum Geburtstag geschenkt.
She gave me flowers for my birthday.
Die Uhren werden heute Nacht umgestellt.
The clocks are being changed tonight. (daylight saving)
Beide Frauen arbeiten im selben Büro.
Both women work in the same office.
The -in → -innen rule
Nouns ending in -in — which is the suffix that marks female persons and professions — double the n before adding -nen. So die Lehrerin (the female teacher) becomes die Lehrerinnen, and die Studentin becomes die Studentinnen.
The doubled n is not decoration: it keeps the preceding vowel short. A single n (Lehrerinen) would suggest a long i, which is wrong.
Die Ärztinnen in der Klinik arbeiten in Schichten.
The (female) doctors at the clinic work in shifts.
Drei Studentinnen haben sich für das Stipendium beworben.
Three (female) students applied for the scholarship.
Unsere Kolleginnen aus München kommen morgen.
Our (female) colleagues from Munich are coming tomorrow.
The golden rule: -(e)n plurals NEVER umlaut
This is the cleanest fact in the whole German plural system. No -(e)n plural ever takes an umlaut. Even when the stem has a perfectly umlaut-able vowel, it stays unchanged.
die Frau → die Frauen
the woman → the women (au stays au — no äu)
die Tante → die Tanten
the aunt → the aunts (a stays a)
die Tür → die Türen
the door → the doors (ü is already in the singular; nothing new is added)
So if you ever catch yourself wanting to write die Fraüen, stop — the -(e)n pattern forbids it.
Gender prediction hands you the plural for free
Here is the shortcut that makes feminine plurals almost effortless. The most productive feminine suffixes — -ung, -heit, -keit, -schaft, -ion, -tät, -ie, -ei, -ur — are all feminine, and they all take the -en plural. So the same ending that tells you the gender also tells you the plural.
| Suffix | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| -ung | die Zeitung | die Zeitungen |
| -heit | die Krankheit | die Krankheiten |
| -keit | die Möglichkeit | die Möglichkeiten |
| -schaft | die Mannschaft | die Mannschaften |
| -ion | die Nation | die Nationen |
| -tät | die Universität | die Universitäten |
Es gibt mehrere Möglichkeiten, das Problem zu lösen.
There are several ways to solve the problem.
An deutschen Universitäten zahlt man kaum Studiengebühren.
At German universities you pay hardly any tuition fees.
Weak masculine nouns also take -(e)n
A closed class of masculine nouns — called weak nouns or the n-declension — also takes -(e)n in the plural: der Junge → die Jungen, der Mensch → die Menschen, der Student → die Studenten, der Kunde → die Kunden. These nouns are special because they take -(e)n not only in the plural but in every case except the nominative singular, even in the singular accusative and dative.
Viele Menschen warten auf den Bus.
Many people are waiting for the bus. (der Mensch → die Menschen)
Die Jungen spielen Fußball auf dem Hof.
The boys are playing football in the yard.
Unsere Kunden sind mit dem Service zufrieden.
Our customers are happy with the service.
The dative plural needs no extra -n
There is a small bonus: because -(e)n plurals already end in -n, the dative plural adds nothing further — the form is already there.
Mit den Frauen aus dem Chor fahre ich nach Wien.
I'm travelling to Vienna with the women from the choir. (Frauen, unchanged in the dative)
Von den Krankheiten der Kindheit ist kaum eine geblieben.
Hardly any of the childhood illnesses are still around.
Common Mistakes
❌ Sie hat mir schöne Blumens geschenkt.
Incorrect — feminine nouns take -(e)n, not the English-style -s.
✅ Sie hat mir schöne Blumen geschenkt.
She gave me beautiful flowers. (die Blume → die Blumen)
❌ Drei Fraüen warteten vor der Tür.
Incorrect — the -(e)n plural never umlauts; Frau → Frauen, not Fraüen.
✅ Drei Frauen warteten vor der Tür.
Three women were waiting at the door.
❌ Die Lehrerinen sind im Lehrerzimmer.
Incorrect — -in doubles the n before -nen.
✅ Die Lehrerinnen sind im Lehrerzimmer.
The (female) teachers are in the staff room. (die Lehrerin → die Lehrerinnen)
❌ Es gibt viele Möglichkeitens.
Incorrect — -keit nouns take -en; no extra -s is added.
✅ Es gibt viele Möglichkeiten.
There are many possibilities.
❌ Die Zeitunge liegen auf dem Tisch.
Incorrect — -ung nouns add -en, not -e.
✅ Die Zeitungen liegen auf dem Tisch.
The newspapers are on the table.
Key Takeaways
- The -(e)n plural adds -n after a final -e, otherwise -en; nouns in -in double the n (Lehrerin → Lehrerinnen).
- It covers about 90% of feminine nouns and the weak masculine (n-declension) nouns.
- It never takes an umlaut — the single cleanest rule in the German plural system.
- Feminine suffixes -ung, -heit, -keit, -schaft, -ion, -tät are feminine and take -en, so gender prediction gives you the plural for free.
- The dative plural needs no extra -n; the form already ends in -n.
Next, see the -s plural — the minority pattern reserved mostly for loanwords, and the one English speakers over-use.
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Start learning German→Related Topics
- Noun Plurals: The Five PatternsA1 — German has no single plural rule — instead, five patterns (-e, -er, -(e)n, -s, and zero), often with an umlaut, and the article is always die.
- The -e Plural (with and without Umlaut)A2 — The -e plural is the workhorse pattern for masculine and many neuter nouns — masculines often add an umlaut, neuters usually don't, and feminines in this group nearly always do.
- The -er Plural (Always with Umlaut where Possible)A2 — The -er plural belongs to many neuter and a few masculine nouns, and it takes an obligatory umlaut whenever the stem vowel is a, o, u, or au — it never applies to feminine nouns.
- The -s Plural (Loanwords and Abbreviations)A2 — The -s plural looks like the English default but is restricted to loanwords, vowel-final nouns, abbreviations and names — it never umlauts, takes no dative -n, and never uses an apostrophe.
- Weak Nouns (the n-Declension)B1 — A closed class of masculine nouns that grow an -(e)n in every case except the nominative singular — why der Student becomes den Studenten the moment it stops being the subject.
- Predicting Gender from Word EndingsA2 — The high-reliability suffix rules that let you predict whether a German noun is der, die, or das from how it ends.