Declension in German Grammar – the Four Cases
Introduction
The four cases in German grammar are nominative (subject), accusative (direct object), dative (indirect object) and genitive (possessive). Because the word order of sentences is not fixed in German grammar, we need the cases to tell us what role a noun or pronoun is playing in a sentence. Articles, nouns, adjectives and pronouns all have to be declined or inflected to reflect a case.
In the following pages, learn when and how to use each case and what to pay attention to when declining words. Just click on one of the links below for an in-depth explanation and exercises that let you practise what you have learnt.
