Demonstrative pronouns — dieser, jener, der
"This one," "that one," "the one over there." German has a few flavors: dieser for a specific this/that, jener for something more distant (mostly literary), and the old workhorse der/die/das used emphatically to point.
The three tools
| Word | Meaning | Register | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| dieser, diese, dieses | this (near) | very common | — |
| jener, jene, jenes | that (far) | literary / formal | rare in speech |
| der, die, das (stressed) | that one / this one | spoken emphasis | super common in speech |
In everyday speech you'll hear dieser for "this" and stressed der/die/das for "that." Jener is slightly archaic — readable but rare.
dieser — declines like der
Dieser follows the same endings as der, die, das — exactly. If you know the definite article table, you know dieser.
| Case | Stem | Maskulin | Feminin | Neutrum | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominativ | dies- | dieser | diese | dieses | diese |
| jen- (literary / formal) | jener | jene | jenes | jene | |
| Akkusativ | dies- | diesen | diese | dieses | diese |
| jen- (literary / formal) | jenen | jene | jenes | jene | |
| Dativ | dies- | diesem | dieser | diesem | diesen |
| jen- (literary / formal) | jenem | jener | jenem | jenen | |
| Genitiv | dies- | dieses | dieser | dieses | dieser |
| jen- (literary / formal) | jenes | jener | jenes | jener |
Both stems take the same endings — the same alphabet as the definite article (der → dies-er, dem → dies-em, des → dies-es). _jen-_ is mostly literary today; everyday speech prefers _der … da_ or _dieser … dort_.
Because dieser is a strong signaller, adjectives after it take the weak ending (-e or -en):
- dieser schöne Mantel — this beautiful coat (masc. nom., -e)
- diesen schönen Mantel — (masc. acc., -en)
- mit dieser jungen Frau — (fem. dat., -en)
Standalone dieser
You can also use dieser without a following noun — "this one."
Examples (tap to reveal translation)
Stressed der/die/das — the conversational demonstrative
The most common demonstrative in spoken German is the plain old definite article, just said with extra weight. In writing you sometimes see italics or boldface to mark it; in speech, your tone does the work.
Examples (tap to reveal translation)
Careful: stressed der / die for people can sound dismissive in the wrong register. "Der da" = "that guy over there" has a shrugging tone. Use with care outside of casual conversation.
derjenige, diejenige, dasjenige — the "the one who" demonstrative
Slightly fancy and mostly written, but useful to recognize. Means "the one who" and introduces a relative clause. Both halves (the determiner and the -jenige ending) decline.
Examples (tap to reveal translation)
solcher / solche / solches — "such a"
"Such a beautiful day" → so ein schöner Tag (common speech) or solch ein schöner Tag (more written). Solcher declines like dieser when it stands alone in front of the noun (no ein).
Examples (tap to reveal translation)
Common mistakes, named
-
Using dieser where stressed der is natural. Both are correct; dieser in speech can sound a touch bookish. For casual conversation, lean on stressed der/die/das.
-
Forgetting the adjective drops to weak after dieser. Dieser groß Hund. ❌ → Dieser große Hund. ✓
-
Using jener in casual speech. It's not wrong, just old-fashioned. Modern speakers use "der da" or dieser + da for "that one."
Mini check
Quick Check
___ Mann ist mein Lehrer.
Quick Check
Ich helfe ___ Frau. (Frau = fem. dat.)
Quick Check
Welches Buch? — ___ hier.
Where this leads
Wer?, was?, welcher? — the question words that ask about things and people.
Next up: Interrogativpronomen — wer, was, welcher.
Test yourself
Quick Check
Ich nehme ___ Kuchen hier. (this cake — Akk. Mask.)
Quick Check
___ Kinder spielen draußen. (those children — Nom. Pl.)
Quick Check
Fill the gap: Ich helfe ___ Mann. (this man — Dativ, Maskulin)
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