German Nominative & Accusative Cases

German uses grammatical cases to show the role of words in a sentence. Nominative = subject (who does the action), Accusative = direct object (who/what receives it).

Verbs That Use Accusative

Many common German verbs always take an accusative object.

Common Mistakes

Learners often confuse subject and object roles.

• Using nominative form for objects.
• Forgetting 'den' in masculine accusative.
• Mixing up subject and object positions.
• Assuming all articles change in accusative.

Questions to Ask Yourself

Before forming a sentence, identify roles clearly.

• Who is doing the action (nominative)?
• Who receives the action (accusative)?
• Is the noun masculine, feminine, or neuter?
• Does the article change?
• Is the verb one that requires accusative?

• Nominative is the subject and usually comes first.
• Accusative can move in the sentence depending on emphasis.
• Verb stays in position 2 in main clauses.
• Case endings determine meaning, not position.

Word Order

Word order in German is flexible, but roles are defined by cases.

Accusative Case (Direct Object)

The accusative case is used for the direct object — the person or thing receiving the action.

What Are Cases?

Cases in German show the grammatical function of a noun or pronoun in a sentence. The first and most important distinction is between nominative and accusative.

Nominative Case (Subject)

The nominative case is used for the subject of the sentence — the person or thing doing the action.

Example Sentences

Example Structures

Article Changes (Der → Den)

Only masculine singular articles change in the accusative case.

Pronoun Changes

Some pronouns also change in the accusative case.