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### The plural article "die"

In the singular, German nouns use **der**, **die**, or **das**. In the plural, the definite article ("the") is always **die**.

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### Forming plural nouns

Unlike English, which usually just adds "-s", German has several ways to make a noun plural. A noun might add an ending (like **-e**, **-en**, or **-er**), change its main vowel to an umlaut (**ä**, **ö**, or **ü**), or do both.

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Notice how **der Tisch** becomes **die Tische** (adding **-e**), and **der Stuhl** becomes **die Stühle** (adding **-e** plus an umlaut).

### Common plural patterns

Always learn the plural form together with a new noun, but keep an eye out for these common patterns:

- **-n** or **-en**: Very common for feminine nouns.
- **-er**: Often used for neuter nouns.
- **No ending**: Nouns ending in **-er**, **-en**, **-el**, or **-chen** usually take no extra ending in the plural. Sometimes their main vowel simply gains an umlaut.

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Plural nouns and the plural article (die)

adjective

adverb

auxiliary verb

conjunction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Definite articles and gender (der, die, das)

Indefinite articles (ein, eine)

Regular verbs and statement word order (ich -e, er -t)

The second person (du -st, Sie -en)

Yes/No questions

The verb 'to have' (habe, hast, hat)

Plural pronouns and regular verbs (wir, ihr, sie)

Plural 'to be' and 'to have' (sind, haben)

Sentence negation (nicht)

Noun negation (kein, keine)

Question words (wer, was, wo, wie)

Numbers 0 to 12 (null, eins, zwei)

The accusative case (den, die, das)

Indefinite accusative articles (einen, keinen)

Direct object pronouns (mich, dich, ihn)

There is / there are (es gibt)

Vowel changes: e to i/ie (er spricht, sie liest)

Vowel changes: a to ä (er fährt)

Weather and conditions (es regnet)

First- and second-person possessives in the nominative (mein, dein, Ihr)

First- and second-person possessives in the accusative (meinen, deinen, Ihren)

Third-person and plural possessives (sein, ihr, unser, euer)

Possession with names (Annas Auto)

Demonstrative pronouns (dieser, diese, dieses)

Expressing preference (gern, lieber)

Asking about direction and origin (woher, wohin)

Expressing ability (können)

Polite requests (möchten)

Expressing intention (wollen)

Modal verbs of obligation and permission (müssen, dürfen)

Separable prefix verbs

Adverbs of frequency (immer, oft, manchmal, nie)

The Dative case and definite articles (dem, der, den)

Dative indefinite and negative articles (einem, einer, keinem)

Dative personal pronouns (mir, dir, ihm, ihr...)

Dative verbs (helfen, danken, gefallen, schmecken)

Dative prepositions (aus, bei, mit, nach...)

Accusative prepositions (für, ohne, gegen)

Two-way prepositions for location (in, an, auf...)

Informal singular imperative (mach, komm)

Plural and formal imperative (macht, machen Sie)

Coordinating conjunctions (und, oder, aber, denn)

Simple past of sein and haben (war, hatte)

The perfect tense: regular verbs (gemacht, gespielt)

Past tense: irregular verbs (ge-...-en)

The perfect tense: mixed verbs (gebracht, gekannt)

The perfect tense with sein (ist gegangen)

The perfect tense: separable verbs (eingekauft)

The perfect tense: inseparable and -ieren verbs (besucht, studiert)

Informal singular commands (mach, lern)

Numbers 13 to 20 (dreizehn to zwanzig)

Counting by tens to 100 (dreißig, vierzig)

Telling time (Uhr, halb, Viertel, vor, nach)

Numbers 21 to 99 (einundzwanzig, zweiunddreißig)

Greetings and farewells

Thank you, sorry and good wishes

Everyday replies

Numbers 100 to 1,000,000 (hundert, tausend...)

Becoming and getting (werden)

The impersonal pronoun (man)

Indefinite pronouns (jemand, niemand...)

Time sequence prepositions (vor, nach, bei)

Time span prepositions (von... bis, seit, für)

Adverbs of sequence (zuerst, dann, danach)

Two-way prepositions for direction (in, auf, an...)

Directional adverbs (hin, her)

Placement verbs (setzen, stellen, legen)

Months of the year (Januar, Februar)

The four seasons (Frühling, Sommer)

Time prepositions and indefinite pronouns (an, in, um)

Ordinal numbers 1st to 19th (am ersten)

Ordinals 20th and beyond (-ste, -sten)

Placement vs. location verbs (stellen vs. stehen)

Accusative reflexive pronouns (mich, dich, sich)

Accusative reflexive verbs (sich freuen)

Dative reflexive pronouns (mir, dir, sich)

Dative reflexive verbs (sich etwas merken)

Ordinal numbers 11th to 19th (-te)

Temporal prepositions (an, in, um)

Double objects with nouns

Double objects with pronouns

The modal verb for advice (sollen)

Simple past of modal verbs (musste, wollte...)

Simple past of common irregulars (wurde, wusste, es gab)

Adverbial connectors of consequence (deshalb, darum...)

Subordinate clauses for statements (dass)

Subordinate clauses for reasons (weil)

Question	Answer
the picture	das Bild
The books and the pictures are beautiful.	Die Bücher und die Bilder sind schön.
the boy	der Junge
the girl	das Mädchen
The boy and the girl learn together.	Der Junge und das Mädchen lernen zusammen.
The boys and the girls laugh often.	Die Jungen und die Mädchen lachen oft.
the table	der Tisch
the chair	der Stuhl
The table and the chair are beautiful.	Der Tisch und der Stuhl sind schön.
We buy the tables and the chairs.	Wir kaufen die Tische und die Stühle.
the tree	der Baum
The house and the tree are very big.	Das Haus und der Baum sind sehr groß.
The houses and the trees are also big.	Die Häuser und die Bäume sind auch groß.
to cost	kosten
The cars and the houses cost a lot of money.	Die Autos und die Häuser kosten viel Geld.
the tomato	die Tomate
the egg	das Ei
The woman needs the tomato and the egg.	Die Frau braucht die Tomate und das Ei.
to eat	essen
We like to eat the tomatoes and the eggs.	Wir essen die Tomaten und die Eier gern.
the plate	der Teller
the cup	die Tasse
The plate and the cup are here.	Der Teller und die Tasse sind hier.
They need the plates and the cups today.	Sie brauchen heute die Teller und die Tassen.
The apples and the tomatoes cost a lot.	Die Äpfel und die Tomaten kosten viel.
The children eat the apples quickly.	Die Kinder essen die Äpfel schnell.
The pictures are very beautiful.	Die Bilder sind sehr schön.