Dative Case in German Grammar – Complete Declension Table
Introduction
The dative case, also known as dative object or indirect object (3. Fall/Wem-Fall in German), is the person or thing receiving the indirect action of a verb. In English grammar, the indirect object is often indicated by the prepositions to and for or pronouns like me, him, us, them etc. In German grammar, the dative case is marked by changing articles, pronouns, adjective and noun endings. We use the dative case after certain verbs and prepositions. We can find the dative case by asking wem/was – To whom/what is the indirect action of the verb directed?
Master the declension of German nouns in the dative case online with Lingolia then practise noun declension in the exercises.
Declension Table: Articles, Adjectives, and Nouns
| definite article* | indefinite article, kein, possessive determiners (mein…) | no article | |
|---|---|---|---|
| masculine | dem netten Vater | einem netten Vater | nettem Vater |
| feminine | der netten Mutter | einer netten Mutter | netter Mutter |
| neuter | dem netten Kind | einem netten Kind | nettem Kind |
| plural | den netten Eltern | netten Eltern | netten Eltern |
*Adjectives that come after the following words are declined exactly the same as after the definite article: derselbe, dieser, jener, mancher, solcher, welcher, alle.
- Example:
- Jeder gute Schüler muss im Unterricht aufpassen.Every good pupil must pay attention in class.
(but: Ein guter Schüler muss im Unterricht aufpassen.A good pupil must pay attention in class.)
Declension Table: Dative Pronouns
| personal pronouns | possessive pronouns (dependent, independent) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| masculine + neuter | feminine | plural | ||
| 1st person singular | mir | meinem | meiner | meinen |
| 2nd person singular | dir | deinem | deiner | deinen |
| 3rd person singular (m) | ihm | seinem | seiner | seinen |
| 3rd person singular (f) | ihr | ihrem | ihrer | ihren |
| 3rd person singular (n) | ihm | seinem | seiner | seinen |
| 1st person plural | uns | unserem | unserer | unseren |
| 2nd person plural | euch | eurem | eurer | euren |
| 3rd person plural | ihnen | ihrem | ihrer | ihren |
Usage
List of German verbs that take the dative:
antwortento answer, zuhörento listen to, zustimmento agree with, widersprechento contradict
glaubento believe, vertrauento trust, folgento follow
helfento help, gratulierento congratulate, dankento thank
gehorchento obey, verzeihento forgive
gehörento belong to, gefallento please
leidtunto feel sorry for, wehtunto hurt
liegento lie, sitzento sit, stehento stand (+ preposition)
List of German Prepositions that take the dative:
aus, aus … heraus, außer, bei, dank, gegenüber,
mit, nach, seit, von, von … aus, zu, bis zu, … zufolge
Dative or Accusative
Some verbs and prepositions can be used with either the dative or the accusative, depending on the circumstance. We use the dative to ask about a position (where?).
hängen, stecken
an, auf, hinter, in, neben, über, unter, vor, zwischen