Der Hund schläft.
English: The dog is sleeping.
- Language
- German
- Level
- A1
- Unit
- Nomen und Kasus
- Practice types
- 0
What this grammar point covers
The nominative case (Nominativ) in German is used for the subject of a sentence – the person or thing doing the action.
When to use it
Use the nominative case for the subject of a sentence, and after the verb 'sein' (to be) when describing or identifying someone or something.
Key forms
- der Mann (masculine)
- die Frau (feminine)
- das Kind (neuter)
- die Kinder (plural)
Examples
Die Frau liest.
English: The woman is reading.
Das Buch ist interessant.
English: The book is interesting.
Die Kinder spielen.
English: The children are playing.
Tips
- Remember: The subject of the sentence is always in the nominative case.
- Pay attention to the articles: 'der', 'die', 'das', and 'die' (plural) show nominative.
- After 'sein' (to be), the noun stays in the nominative.