German Adjective Endings: The Complete Declension Guide

German adjective endings are one of the most consistently frustrating topics for learners — not because they are arbitrary, but because there are three separate tables and learners often do not know which one applies. Once you understand the logic behind the system, you can always work out the correct ending. This guide gives you all three tables in full, explains when each applies, and shows you the patterns that make memorisation far more manageable than it first appears.

Why German adjectives change their endings

In German, every noun has a gender (masculine, feminine, or neuter), a number (singular or plural), and a case (nominative, accusative, dative, or genitive). This information needs to be visible somewhere in the noun phrase. German distributes this information across the article and the adjective. When the article already carries a clear signal (like der for masculine nominative), the adjective only needs a minimal ending (-e). When there is no article, or when the article gives only partial information, the adjective ending must carry more of the load.

This is why there are three different tables — corresponding to how much grammatical signalling work the adjective needs to do:

• Weak declension — after definite articles (der, die, das, den, dem, des and their forms). The article has already done most of the signalling, so adjective endings are mostly -e or -en.
• Mixed declension — after indefinite articles (ein, eine, einen…) and possessives (mein, dein, sein, ihr, unser, euer, Ihr). These articles are sometimes ambiguous (for example, ein could be masculine nominative or neuter nominative/accusative), so the adjective occasionally needs to supply the missing signal.
• Strong declension — no article at all. The adjective must carry the full case/gender signal itself, so the endings largely mirror the definite article forms.

Table 1: Weak declension (after definite article)

Use this table when the noun phrase starts with der, die, das, den, dem, des, dieser, jener, jeder, welcher (and their declined forms).

The key observation: only five cells use -e (nominative singular all three genders, plus accusative singular feminine and neuter). Everything else is -en. Some learners remember this as the "5-e rule" for weak declension — just five -e endings, all the rest -en.

Examples with the adjective alt (old):

• Nom. masc.: der alte Mann — the old man
• Nom. fem.: die alte Frau — the old woman
• Nom. neut.: das alte Haus — the old house
• Acc. masc.: Ich sehe den alten Mann. — I see the old man.
• Dat. fem.: Ich helfe der alten Frau. — I help the old woman.
• Plural: die alten Männer, die alten Frauen, die alten Häuser

Table 2: Mixed declension (after indefinite article / possessives)

Use this table after ein, eine, einen, eines, einem, einer and after possessives: mein, dein, sein, ihr, unser, euer, Ihr (in all their declined forms).

The mixed table looks like the weak table with a few key differences. In the three "ambiguous" positions — where ein fails to signal the gender — the adjective steps in with the distinctive ending: nominative masculine gets -er, and nominative and accusative neuter get -es. These three cells are the only ones that differ from the weak table.

Examples with gut (good) and mein (my):

• Nom. masc.: ein guter Freund — a good friend
• Nom. fem.: eine gute Idee — a good idea
• Nom. neut.: ein gutes Buch — a good book
• Acc. masc.: Ich habe einen guten Freund. — I have a good friend.
• Dat. masc.: mit meinem guten Freund — with my good friend
• Nom. plural: meine guten Freunde — my good friends

Table 3: Strong declension (no article)

Use this table when there is no article at all before the adjective. This happens in certain contexts: after numbers greater than one (zwei alte Männer), in formal writing, with partitive quantities (kalter Kaffee — cold coffee), and in set phrases.

Notice that the strong declension endings closely mirror the definite article forms: der → -er for masculine nominative, des → -en (with the noun suffix handling the -s), and so on. This makes sense — the adjective is doing the signalling work that the article would normally do.

Examples:

• Nom. masc.: Kalter Kaffee schmeckt nicht gut. — Cold coffee doesn't taste good.
• Nom. fem.: Frische Luft ist wichtig. — Fresh air is important.
• Nom. neut.: Gutes Brot ist teuer. — Good bread is expensive.
• Dat. masc.: mit frischem Brot — with fresh bread
• Acc. plural: Ich kaufe frische Äpfel. — I am buying fresh apples.

Multiple adjectives before a noun

When two or more adjectives appear before a noun, all of them take the same declension — they do not interact with each other. Whatever table applies to the first adjective applies to all of them:

• der alte, müde Mann — the old, tired man (both -e, weak declension)
• ein alter, müder Mann — an old, tired man (both -er, mixed, masculine nominative)
• mit frischem, dunklem Brot — with fresh, dark bread (both -em, strong, neuter dative)

Adjectives used as nouns

German can turn any adjective into a noun by capitalising it. These adjectival nouns still take adjective endings — they just follow the weak declension after a definite article, and mixed after an indefinite article:

• der Deutsche — the German (man); die Deutsche — the German (woman)
• ein Deutscher — a German (man) [mixed, masculine nominative → -er]
• das Gute — the good (thing); das Böse — the evil
• etwas Gutes — something good [strong declension after etwas]
• nichts Neues — nothing new [strong, neuter nominative → -es]

Tips for memorising the three tables

1. See them as one system, not three unrelated tables. The underlying logic is consistent: the ending must convey enough case-gender information. The more the article has already said, the less the adjective needs to add.

2. The weak table is mostly -en. Only 5 cells use -e; all others are -en. Learn the 5 exceptions, not the majority.

3. Mixed = weak + three "strong" cells. The mixed table is identical to weak except in nominative masculine (-er), nominative neuter (-es), and accusative neuter (-es). Those three are where ein is ambiguous and the adjective must carry the gender signal.

4. Strong endings = definite article endings (mostly). If you know der, die, das, den, dem, des in all their forms, you know most of the strong declension endings. The adjective is essentially "becoming" the article.

5. Exposure beats drilling. Ultimately, the endings become automatic through reading and listening — not from staring at tables. Use the tables as a reference, but spend most of your time consuming real German. Patterns will eventually fire without conscious effort.

Frequently asked questions

Why do German adjectives change their endings?

German adjective endings communicate grammatical information — the noun's gender, number, and case. The amount of information the adjective must carry depends on what the article (if any) has already communicated. After a definite article like der, which already signals masculine nominative clearly, the adjective only needs a minimal -e ending. With no article, the adjective must carry the full signal itself, leading to stronger endings like -er, -em, -es.

How many adjective ending tables are there in German?

There are three: weak declension (after definite articles), mixed declension (after indefinite articles and possessives), and strong declension (no article). The three tables look different but follow the same underlying logic — the adjective ending must together with the article convey enough grammatical information about the noun.

What is the easiest way to remember German adjective endings?

For the weak table: learn the 5 cells that use -e (nominative singular all genders + accusative feminine and neuter singular); everything else is -en. For mixed: it is mostly the same as weak, with -er for masculine nominative and -es for neuter nominative and accusative. For strong: the endings largely mirror the definite article forms. Above all, regular reading and listening will make the endings automatic far faster than memorising tables alone.

Related guides

• German cases explained: Nominativ, Akkusativ, Dativ, Genitiv
• Der, Die, Das — mastering German articles
• German verb conjugation guide
• German word order explained