Purpose
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to correctly use the genitive case to show possession, and know its more common everyday alternative.
Lesson Explanation
The genitive case, the fourth and final German case, shows possession — genuinely similar to English’s “of the” or possessive “-\’s”:
Nominative → Genitive: der → des die → der das → des
Example: das Auto des Mannes (the man’s car, literally “the car of the man”) — notice masculine and neuter nouns also typically add -s or -es to the noun itself in the genitive.
A genuinely important, practical point: in everyday spoken German, the genitive is increasingly often replaced with von (of) plus the dative case (Part 4, Lesson 2): das Auto von dem Mann — genuinely more common in casual speech, though the genitive remains standard in formal and written German.
Practice Questions
1. What does the genitive case show?
View Answer
Possession.
2. What does “der” become in the genitive?
View Answer
des
3. What does “die” (feminine) become in the genitive?
View Answer
der
4. Write “the man’s car,” using the genitive.
View Answer
das Auto des Mannes
5. What happens to many masculine and neuter nouns themselves in the genitive, beyond just the article?
View Answer
They typically add -s or -es.
6. What is a genuinely common alternative to the genitive in everyday spoken German?
View Answer
von + the dative case.
7. Write “the man’s car,” using this more casual von + dative alternative.
View Answer
das Auto von dem Mann
8. What earlier lesson introduced the dative case?
View Answer
Part 4, Lesson 2.
9. Is the genitive more common in formal/written German, or casual spoken German?
View Answer
Formal and written German.
10. How many total grammatical cases does German have, including the genitive?
View Answer
Four.
11. What does “des” specifically mark?
View Answer
The genitive form of masculine or neuter definite articles.
12. What English possessive form does the German genitive genuinely resemble?
View Answer
“of the” or possessive “-s”