Genitiv

The possessive case. Ask: Wessen? (whose?). Shows ownership or association. Masculine and neuter nouns add -s or -es.

Wessen? — Whose?

Definite & Indefinite Articles

	Maskulin	Feminin	Neutrum	Plural
Definit	des (+s/es)	der	des (+s/es)	der
Indefinit	eines (+s/es)	einer	eines (+s/es)	— (keiner)

Noun Endings

Masculine and neuter nouns add -s (multi-syllable) or -es (single syllable):

des Mannes, des Kindes, des Buches
des Lehrers, des Autos, des Gartens

Genitiv (Possession)

Shows who owns something. The noun after the genitive article gets -s/-es.

Das Auto des Mannes. (The man's car.)

von + Dativ (Spoken Alternative)

In casual speech, Germans often replace Genitiv with 'von' + Dativ.

Das Auto von dem Mann. (The car of the man.)

Genitiv Prepositions

Several common prepositions require Genitiv: wegen, während, trotz, statt, innerhalb, außerhalb, and more. See the dedicated page for the full list with examples and the spoken-German Dativ alternatives → Genitiv-Präpositionen

Common Mistakes

❌ Spoken (informal)

Dativ after Genitiv prepositions — common in speech

wegen dem Regen / trotz dem Wetter

✅ Written (formal/exams)

Genitiv after Genitiv prepositions — required in writing

wegen des Regens / trotz des Wetters

Examples

Examples (tap to reveal translation)

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Quick Check

How do masculine and neuter nouns typically show Genitiv?

Quick Check

Das Haus ___ Nachbarn ist groß. (der Nachbar, n-Deklination)

Quick Check

Die Farbe ___ Himmels ist blau. (der Himmel)

Genitiv

Definite & Indefinite Articles

Noun Endings

Genitiv Prepositions

Common Mistakes

Examples

Examples (tap to reveal translation)

Quick Check

Quick Check

Quick Check

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