Die Großen spielen mit den Kleinen im Garten.

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Breakdown of Die Großen spielen mit den Kleinen im Garten.

• in: in
• dem: the; (masculine or neuter, dative)
• mit: with

Questions & Answers about Die Großen spielen mit den Kleinen im Garten.

Why are Großen and Kleinen capitalized?

In German, adjectives can be turned into nouns when the actual noun is omitted but clearly understood from context. This is called substantivierte Adjektive (nominalized adjectives).

• die Großen literally: “the big ones” / “the older ones / adults / bigger children”
• die Kleinen literally: “the small ones” / “the little ones / younger children”

Because they are functioning as nouns here (standing in for people), they must be capitalized, just like any other noun in German.
If they were just normal adjectives before nouns, they would be lowercase, e.g.:

• die großen Kinder – the big children
• die kleinen Kinder – the small children

What exactly do die Großen and die Kleinen refer to?

On their own, die Großen and die Kleinen are a bit vague and rely on context.

Common interpretations:

• die Großen

  • adults vs. children
  • older children vs. younger children
  • bigger people vs. smaller people

• die Kleinen

  • children (seen from an adult’s perspective)
  • younger kids in contrast to older kids
  • smaller people in contrast to taller/bigger ones

In everyday speech, in a family or school context, die Großen often means the older kids and die Kleinen the younger kids / the little ones.

Why do Großen and Kleinen end in -en?