Der, Die, Das Flashcards

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CSV or TSV · columns: German, English, Noun Gender

Why der, die and das are worth drilling separately

Every German noun is masculine (der), feminine (die) or neuter (das), and the gender decides how the article, adjective endings and pronouns behave around it. Learn Tisch = table without learning that it is der Tisch, and you will hesitate every single time you try to use it in a sentence.

Most flashcard apps test the translation only. These cards ask for both, and the article is stripped from the word on screen so the card cannot give the answer away.

The endings that are always feminine

These are the best return on effort in the whole language. A noun ending in any of these is die, effectively without exception:

• -ung — die Zeitung, die Wohnung, die Meinung
• -heit — die Freiheit, die Gesundheit, die Wahrheit
• -keit — die Möglichkeit, die Schwierigkeit, die Fähigkeit
• -schaft — die Freundschaft, die Gesellschaft, die Wirtschaft
• -ion — die Nation, die Situation, die Diskussion
• -tät — die Universität, die Qualität, die Realität
• -ei — die Bäckerei, die Metzgerei, die Polizei

The endings that are always neuter

• -chen and -lein — any diminutive is das, which is why das Mädchen (girl) is neuter. The ending beats the meaning every time.
• -ment — das Dokument, das Instrument, das Medikament
• -um — das Museum, das Zentrum, das Datum
• Ge- collectives — das Gebäude, das Gemüse, das Gespräch

The endings that are always masculine

• -er on a person doing something — der Lehrer, der Fahrer, der Spieler
• -ismus — der Kapitalismus, der Tourismus
• -ling — der Frühling, der Lehrling, der Schmetterling
• -or — der Motor, der Professor, der Doktor
• Days, months, seasons and most weather — der Montag, der Januar, der Sommer, der Regen

The ones that catch everyone out

das Mädchen is neuter because of the diminutive ending, not because German has an opinion about girls. die Person is feminine whoever it refers to. der Mensch is masculine for any human being. das Mitglied and das Genie are neuter regardless of who they describe. These are in the deck deliberately.

How the drill works

Each card shows the German noun with the article removed. Type the English translation and pick der, die or das. Both have to be right. Get it right three times and the card moves to your Strong pile; get it wrong once and it goes back to Weak, so the genders you keep missing are the ones you keep seeing.

Once these patterns are second nature, work through the level decks — every noun in them tests the gender the same way.