Using German participles as adjectives

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German participles as adjectives

In German, the Partizip I and II can be used before a noun as attributive adjectives; e.g. das weinende Kind the crying child, das gescheiterte Experiment the failed experiment. This is known as a Partizipialattribut in German.

This allows us to avoid relative clauses and makes sentences shorter and more elegant.

Read on to learn about using participles as adjectives in German grammar, then practise in the interactive exercises.

Example

Unser sehr für den Klimaschutz engagiertes Dorf hat komplett auf Öko-Strom umgestellt. Die pro Jahr benötigte Energie für die hier lebende Bevölkerung gewinnen wir durch Wind- und Solarkraft.

Die im Dorf installierten Windräder und Solarmodule erzeugen sogar mehr Strom als die durch die Anlage zu versorgenden Haushalte benötigen.

Before you learn about using German participles as adjectives, make sure you’re familiar with the following topics first:

How to form German participles

The Partizip I (present participle) is formed in the same way for all verbs: infinitive + d.

Example:
arbeiten → arbeitend to work → working

The Partizip II (past participle) for regular verbs is formed with ge…t; irregular verbs have their own form which must be learned by heart (see our list of irregular verbs).

Examples:
arbeiten → gearbeitet to work → worked
gehen → gegangen to go → gone

Declining participles acting as adjectives

When participles act as adjectives, they are also declined in the same way as normal adjectives.

This means that we change the ending of the participle to reflect the case, gender and number of the noun.

Examples:
die funktionierende Anlage the working plant
Type 1 declension: feminine noun in the nominative, introduced by a definite article: -e
ein arbeitendes Windkraftwerk a working wind farm
Type 2 declension: neuter noun in the nominative, introduced by an indefinite article: -es
die reparierten Windräder the repaired wind turbines
Type 1 declension: plural noun introduced by a definite article: -en

Check out our section on adjective declension to learn about the specific declension types for adjectives and participles, or head over to our page on the four cases in German grammar to learn more about declension in general.

Partizip I vs. Partizip II as adjectives

The present and past participles have different functions as adjectives:

  • Partizip I has an active meaning, similar (but not identical!) to the -ing form in English
Example:
Die in diesem Dorf lebende Bevölkerung ist sehr umweltbewusst. The people living in this village are very environmentally conscious.
= Die Bevölkerung, die in diesem Dorf lebt, ist sehr umweltbewusst.
Example:
Die für das Dorf benötigte Energie gewinnen wir durch Wind- und Solarkraft. We’ll generate the energy needed for the village via wind and solar power.
= Die Energie, die für das Dorf benötigt wird, gewinnen wir durch Wind- und Solarkraft.

Partizip II with an active meaning

The Partizip II has an active meaning when it describes an action that was completed prior to another action in the past.

This is only the case with verbs that take sein in the perfect tense.

Example:
Das modern gewordene Dorf dient als positives Beispiel für die Energiewende. The modernised village serves as a positive example of the energy transition.
= Das Dorf, das modern geworden ist, dient als positives Beispiel für die Energiewende. The village, which has modernised, serves as a positive example for the energy transition.

In the example above, the action expressed by the participle adjective (i.e. the modernising) happened before the action expressed in the main clause.

Note: we don’t typically use participles in this way with verbs that take haben in the perfect.

How to replace relative clauses with participles

When we want to make a sentence shorter and more elegant, it’s common to replace a relative clause with a participle:

Partizip I in place of a relative clause

Use the Partizip I to replace an active relative clause where the relative pronoun is in the nominative case, for example:

Example:
Die Windräder, die den Strom für das Dorf produzieren, stehen am Dorfrand. The wind turbines that produce electricity for the village are located at the edge of the village.

First, remove the relative pronoun and any auxiliary verbs:

Example:
Die Windräder, die den Strom für das Dorf produzieren, stehen am Dorfrand.

Then, place the rest of the relative clause between the article and the noun (indicated below with ………).

Example:
Die ……… Windräder, die den Strom für das Dorf produzieren, stehen am Dorfrand.

Replace the verb with its Partizip I form (here: produzieren → produzierend) and add the corresponding declension ending.

Example:
→ Die den Strom für das Dorf produzierenden Windräder stehen am Dorfrand. The wind turbines producing the electricity for the village are located at the edge of the village.
Type 1 declension: plural noun in the nominative introduced by a definite article: -en

Partizip II in place of a relative clause

Use the Partizip II in place of a passive relative clause where the relative pronoun is in the nominative:

Example:
Die Windräder, die im Dorf installiert wurden, erzeugen genug Strom für die ganze Bevölkerung. The wind turbines that were installed in the village produce enough electricity for the whole population.

First, remove the relative pronoun and the passive auxiliary (here wurden).

Example:
Die Windräder, die im Dorf installiert wurden, erzeugen genug Strom für die ganze Bevölkerung.

Then, place the rest of the relative clause between the article and noun of the main clause (indicated below with ………).

Example:
Die ……… Windräder, die im Dorf installiert wurden, erzeugen genug Strom für die ganze Bevölkerung.

Here, our verb already appears in the Partizip II form (installiert), so all we need to do is add the correct declension ending.

Example:
Die im Dorf installierten Windräder erzeugen genug Strom für die ganze Bevölkerung. The wind turbines intalled in the village generate enough electricity for the whole population.
Type 1 declension: plural noun in the nominative introduced by a definite article: -en

Active → Passive

When we have an active relative clause with a relative pronoun in the accusative, we first have to transform it into the passive before shortening it:

active:
Durch den Strom, den das Dorf produziert, sind die Einwohner unabhängig vom öffentlichen Stromnetz. Thanks to the electricity that the village produces, the inhabitants are independent of the public power grid.
den = accusative relative pronoun
passive:
Durch den Strom, der vom Dorf produziert wird, sind die Einwohner unabhängig vom öffentlichen Stromnetz. Thanks to the electricity that is produced by the village, the inhabitants are independent of the public power grid.

Now we can replace the passive relative clause with the Partizip II of the main verb.

Example:
Durch den vom Dorf produzierten Strom sind die Einwohner unabhängig vom öffentlichen Stromnetz. Thanks to the electricity produced by the village, the inhabitants are independent of the public power grid.