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What are determiners? Definite and indefinite articles (der, ein, die, eine, etc.), demonstratives (dieser, diese, etc.), possessives (mein, seine, ihrer, etc.) and a few others, are what we call "determiners".You will find everything you need to know about the first three categories mentioned in the modules "nominative, accusative, dative and genitive" and "German declension tables". This module focuses on other determiners that have their own patterns. Let's start!
alle (all/all the)
This determiner is used with plural nouns, and its declension will be the same as the declension of dieser:
alle (nominative), alle (accusative), allen (dative), aller (genitive) + plural nouns
Example:
Sie hat alle guten Bonbons aufgegessen. = She's eaten up all the good sweets.
beide (both)
This determiner is used with plural nouns, and its declension will be the same as the declension of dieser:
beide (nominative), beide (accusative), beiden (dative), beider (genitive) + plural nouns
Example:
Ich möchte beide T-Shirts kaufen. = I would like to buy both t-shirts.
ein paar (a few)
This determiner is invariable. Be careful not to confuse it with the noun ein Paar (a couple).
Example:
Wir fahren in ein paar Tagen nach Griechenland. = We are going to Greece in a few days.
einige (some)
This determiner is usually used with plural nouns, but can be found with a singular noun in rare cases. Its declension will follow that of the demonstrative dieser:
einige (nominative), einige (accusative), einigen (dative), einiger (genitive) + plural nouns
If it is used with a singular noun, the declension will also follow that of dieser (masculine), diese (feminine) and dieses (neuter) depending on the case (nominative, accusative, dative, genitive)
Examples:
Nur einige Leute sind gekommen = Only a few people came.
Nach einigem Überlegen hat sie einige Bücher gekauft. = After some deliberation she bought some books.
irgendein/irgendwelche ("some/any")
irgendein/ iregendwelche refer to the existence of something or someone indefinite. irgendein is always used with a singular noun. Its declension will follow that of the definite article ein:
irgendein (masculine nominative), irgendeine (feminine nominative), irgendein (neuter nominative) + singular noun
See the declension tables of nominative, accusative, dative and genitive.
irgendwelche is always used with a plural noun, and its declension will follow that of dieser:
Irgendwelche (nominative), irgendwelche (accusative), irgendwelchen (dative), irgendwelcher (genitive)
To better understand how to use these two determiners, here are two examples:
Er hat irgendeinen Job bei einer Zeitung. = He has some job with a newspaper.
Sie hat mir Fotos von irgendwelchen Filmstars gezeigt, von denen ich noch nicht gehört habe. = She showed me pictures of some filmstars I've never heard of.
jeder (each, every, any)
jeder is only used with a singular noun and will follow the declension table of dieser, diese, dieses:
jeder (nominative masculine), jede (nominative feminine), jedes (nominative neuter) etc.
See dieser in the "declension tables" for the different cases.
Example:
Wir spielen jeden Tag Monopoly. = We play Monopoly every day.
mancher (some, "a fair number of")
mancher is mainly used in the plural (even if it is sometimes found in the singular) and will follow the declension table of dieser:
mancher (masculine nominative), manche (feminine nominative), manches (neuter nominative), manche (plural nominative) etc.
See dieser in the "declension tables" for the different cases. Example:
An manchen Tagen bleibt Alfred einfach im Bett. = Some days Alfred just stays in bed.
mehrere (several)
mehrere is always used with a plural noun and will follow the declension of dieser:
mehrere (nominative), mehrere (accusative), mehreren (dative), mehrerer (genitive)
Example:
Er brauchte zur Reparatur des Computers mehrere Monate. = He needed several months to repair the computer.
sämtliche (all, referring to the members of a particular set)
sämtliche represents all members of a defined group. Its declension will follow the declension table of dieser.
Example:
In der Kreidezeit sind sämtliche Dinosaurier ausgestorben. = All the dinosaurs died out in the Cretaceous period. (all members of the "dinosaur" group)
viel (many, much, a lot)
When used in the singular, viel is usually invariable. When it is plural, its declension follow that of dieser:
viele (plural nominative), viele (plural accusative), vielen (plural dative), vieler (plural genitive)
Example:
Viel Glück! Ich hoffe, du fängst viele Fische. = Good luck! I hope you catch lots of fish.
was für (ein) (what sort of…)
In the singular, the word ein in was für ein declines like the indefinite article (a/an).
was für ein (masculine nominative), was für eine (feminine nominative and accusative), was für einen (masculine accusative), etc.
Example:
Was für ein Mann ist er denn? = What sort of a man is he? What type of man is he?
In the plural, we simply use was für without ein, with obviously a plural noun that will follow the usual declension of plural nouns:
Was für Tiere magst du am liebsten? = What kind of animals do you like best? What are your favorite animals?
welcher ( which)
It can be used in the singular as well as in the plural and will be declined as dieser:
welche, welchen, welcher etc.
Example:
Welche Partei wählst du dieses Mal? = Which party are you going to vote for this time?
This determiner may have the meaning of "some" in spoken German. It will still be declined as dieser:
Ich brauche Marken. Hast du welche? = I need stamps. Do you have some?
Wenn du Erdbeeren möchtest, dann nimm dir welche! = If you want strawberries, then take some!
Vor dem Haus stehen welche. = A few people / Some people are standing in front of the house.
wenig / wenige (little, few, not many, not much)
When used in the singular, it is invariable (wenig) and when used in the plural, it has the same declension as dieser:
wenige (plural nominative), wenige (plural accusative), wenigen (plural dative), weniger (plural genitive)
Example:
Das Flugzeug landet in wenigen Minuten. = The plane will be landing in a few minutes.
Er hat wenig Zeit. = He doesn't have much time.