Common Plural Forms
Learn common German nouns in the singular and plural. Practise them as word pairs and use them in short everyday sentences.
Explanation
Singular and plural
The definite article for all German plural nouns is **die**. You often need to learn the plural together with the noun.
- **die Blume → die Blumen**
- **der Hund → die Hunde**
- **das Buch → die Bücher**
- **das Foto → die Fotos**
- **der Schlüssel → die Schlüssel**
- **der Apfel → die Äpfel**
- **das Haus → die Häuser**
Common changes include **-n/-en**, **-e**, **-er**, **-s**, no added ending, and sometimes an umlaut. These patterns help you learn, but they are not a reliable rule for every noun.
Always learn a pair: **das Buch – die Bücher**.
The article and verb also change in a sentence:
- **Der Hund spielt im Garten.** → **Die Hunde spielen im Garten.**
- **Die Lampe steht am Fenster.** → **Die Lampen stehen am Fenster.**
- **Das Auto steht vor dem Haus.** → **Die Autos stehen vor dem Haus.**
Exercises
- Write the correct plural form with the article die. (9)
- Rewrite the sentence from singular to plural or from plural to singular. (11)
A1 · German · Grammar