Personal Pronouns in Three Cases
Last updated:
Learn German personal pronouns in the nominative, accusative, and dative. Practise replacing nouns, distinguishing du from Sie, and ordering pronouns in sentences with two complements.
Explanation
Personal pronouns replace nouns
Personal pronouns stand for people or things that are already known. They help us avoid repetition:
- Der Schlüssel liegt hier. Er gehört meiner Schwester.
- Ich sehe die Nachbarn. Ich grüße sie.
- Wir helfen dem Kind. Wir helfen ihm.
In the third-person singular, the pronoun follows the noun's gender: der Kalender -> er, die Lampe -> sie, das Handy -> es.
Forms
| Person | Nominative | Accusative | Dative |
|---|
| first-person singular | ich | mich | mir |
| second-person singular | du | dich | dir |
| third-person singular masculine | er | ihn | ihm |
| third-person singular feminine | sie | sie | ihr |
| third-person singular neuter | es | es | ihm |
| first-person plural | wir | uns | uns |
| second-person plural | ihr | euch | euch |
| third-person plural | sie | sie | ihnen |
| formal address | Sie | Sie | Ihnen |
The case depends on the pronoun's role:
- Nominative: Who or what performs the action? Er wartet.
- Accusative: Who or what is directly affected? Ich sehe ihn.
- Dative: To whom do I give, help, or reply? Ich helfe ihm.
Informal and formal address
German usually uses du or ihr with friends, relatives, and children. Formal situations use Sie and Ihnen. Formal pronouns are always capitalized.
Order with two complements
If one complement is a pronoun and the other is a noun, the pronoun normally comes first:
- Ich schicke ihr die Datei.
- Ich schicke sie der Kundin.
If both complements are pronouns, the accusative comes before the dative:
- Ich schicke sie ihr.
- Wir erklären es ihnen.
This is the neutral default order.
Exercises
- Choose the personal pronoun whose form and case fit the sentence. (11)
- Replace the marked noun phrase with a personal pronoun and write the complete sentence. (11)
- Complete each short everyday exchange with the correct personal pronoun. (11)
- Put the words in neutral default order. Remember: pronouns precede nouns, and accusative precedes dative when both are pronouns. (11)
A2 · German · Grammar