Nominative case (1. Fall) in German

What is the nominative case in German?

Within a sentence the nominative is fundamental, because it is the subject of the sentence. An article, an adjective and a nouns can form the nominal group of the nominative. They are based on the case, gender and number. In order to find the nominative of a sentence, you have to answer the question: 

wer oder was? - who or what (performs the action)

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How to identify the Nominative noun in a sentence

This table shows you some examples, how to ask for the nominative in a sentence.

Different forms of the nominative

The nominative can be an explicit person, personal pronoun or a nominal group (adjective/pronoun + noun).

Here you can find some examples for each type.

Attention: the adjective is always declined according to the case, the gender and the number. To learn more about the declension of adjectives, have a look in to our lessons about the German adjectives.

Declension of the Nominative Case

In the nominative case the nouns remain unchanged. The articles and/or the adjective, which accompanies the noun, designate the case, gender and number. Have also a look into the topic of articles and adjectives in German.

Table of declension of the article and the noun in the nominative case

In this table you can find several examples for the declension of noun and their articles in the different genders. In addition, there are some examples of adjectives that accompany a noun in the nominative case.

Translation:

• der gute Mann - the good man
• die schöne Frau - the beautiful women
• das junge Kind - the young child
• die vielen Leute - the many people

Remember: there is no indefinite article in Plural.

Table of personal pronouns in the nominative case

In the nominative case you have to decline personal pronouns too. They are listed in this table.

How do you use the nominative case in German?

There are three different situations when to use the nominative case.

1. As the subject of the verb
2. As a predicate nominative
3. As a noun of a direct address

As the subject of the verb

Using the nominative case as the subject of the verb is the most common way in the German language. Have a look in the examples below to explore the nominative as a subject.

• Der Junge liest ein Buch. - The boy reads a book.
• Meine Katze ist weiß. - My cat is white.
• Die Stadt ist bekannt. - The city is well-know.
• Das Zimmer ist groß. - The room is large.

As a predicate nominative

A predicative nominative is a noun that is equated with the subject of the sentence or clause. It follows a linking verb and refers back to it. This table shows you common linking verbs.

As a noun of a direct address

You have to use the nominative case in phrases where you use the imperative or you directly address someone.

Here are some examples:

• Guten Tag, mein Freund. - Good day, my friend.
• Herr Müller, wie geht es Ihnen? - Mr. Müller how are you?
• Räum dein Zimmer auf, Clara! - Clean your room, Clara!
• Sei still, Markus! - Be quite, Markus!

Where do you place the nominative in a sentence

Usually the nominative, being the subject, occupies the first place in a sentence and the it is followed by the verb. However, it often happens that the sentence starts with an adverb or another element. In this case, since the verb always occupies the second place, the nominative (subject) comes after the verb (in third place).

Here are some examples: 

• Luca singt ein Lied. - Luca sings a song.
• Sie fahren morgen in die Berge. - They are going to the mountains tomorrow. 
• Gestern bin ich mit dem Hund spazieren gegangen - Yesterday I went on walk with my dog. 
• Nach der Arbeit gehe ich zum Strand. - After work I to the beach.

Now you have learned the German nominative case. You can browse through the exercises to improve your knowledge. Good luck!