Adjective endings, part 2 — with ein and with no article

You've seen the weak declension. Now the other two patterns. The underlying idea stays the same:

Somebody needs to signal the case. If the article does it, the adjective stays low-key. If the article is vague or missing, the adjective takes over and wears the strong ending.

The two remaining patterns

• Mixed (after ein, kein, or a possessive like mein) — when the article is defined only in some cells, the adjective fills in the gaps.
• Strong (no article at all) — the adjective does the whole job.

Mixed declension — after ein, kein, mein

Ein words mark gender clearly in some slots (Akkusativ masculine einen, feminine eine) but stay vague in others (Nominativ masc ein, Nominativ neuter ein). Where the article is vague, the adjective picks up the strong ending.

The three highlighted cells are where the adjective has to do work: Nom. masc. -er, Nom. neut. -es, Akk. neut. -es. Everywhere else, it's the familiar -en you already know from weak declension.

Strong declension — no article at all

When there's nothing in front of the adjective — bare plural, uncountable nouns, or fronted descriptions — the adjective carries the full weight of signaling gender/case. Endings match what der/die/das/die would have been in that position.

The endings now look a lot like the articles themselves:

If you covered the article column (der, die, das, die, den, die, das, die...) and replaced it with adjective endings, you'd get almost this table. That's the design: the adjective simply becomes the article when the article is absent.

Worked examples

The unified insight

Put all three tables next to each other and the rule is:

1. Check the article. Does it already tell you gender AND case clearly (der, die, dem, etc.)? → Weak.
2. Does the article say only half the story (ein, mein)? → Mixed.
3. No article? → Strong.

The "endings" move between article and adjective like a baton. Somebody has to carry the signal.

Multiple adjectives behave as a chain

If two adjectives stack, they all take the same ending.

Common mistakes, named

1. Using weak endings after ein. Ein klein Kind. ❌ → Ein kleines Kind. ✓ Neut. nom. with ein vague → adjective shows -es.

2. Adding -en everywhere in strong declension. Ich trinke schwarzen Milch. ❌ → schwarze Milch. ✓ Milch is feminine Akkusativ → same as Nominativ → -e.

3. Forgetting Dativ plural noun + -n. Mit bunten Bücher. ❌ → Mit bunten Büchern. ✓ Dativ plural nouns add -n regardless of pattern.

4. Overthinking it. Start by checking the article. If you have der, you're in weak territory. If you have ein or kein or mein, mixed. Nothing? Strong. That's the whole decision tree.

Mini check

Where this leads

Adjectives open a world of description. Now we push them further — making things more, most, or comparing two. Next: comparatives and superlatives.

Next up: Komparativ und Superlativ.

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