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8.4.2.1: Adjectives overview

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    Adjectives:Adjektive

    Adjectives describe nouns, and can either precede or follow the noun in German without affecting the meaning of the article. In German, just like English, adjectives can be graded to express comparisons between two (comparative) or more (comparative and superlative) things, places, people or thoughts. Unlike in English, however, adjectives that precede nouns take endings depending on the case, gender and number of that noun.

    I. Before and after

    Attributive adjectives

    Adjectives that precede nouns (and most often come between an article and a noun) are called attributive adjectives.

    Es war einmal ein reicher Mann. Once upon a time, there was a rich man.
    Seine Frau rief ihre einzige Tochter zu sich ans Bett. His wife called her only daughter to her bed.

    Predicate adjectives

    Adjectives that follow nouns are usually separated by a verb such as sein, werden, heißen and are called predicate adjectives.

    Die Frau war leider sehr krank. Unfortunately, the woman was very sick.
    Sie sagte ihrer Tochter: Liebes Kind, sei fromm und gut! She said to her daughter: Dear child, be pious and good!

    II. Comparisons

    Comparative and superlative

    Adjectives can be graded to express comparative and superlative qualities.

    Aschenputtels Leben wurde viel schlimmer, als sein Vater die andere Frau heiratete. Cinderella's life became much worse when her father married the other woman.
    Das arme Mädchen wurde jeden Tag immer trauriger. The poor girl was sadder and sadder every day.
    Als der Vater von einer Reise zurückkam, brachte er den Stiefschwestern die schönsten Kleider, Perlen und Edelsteine mit. When the father returned from a trip, he brought the most beautiful clothes, pearls and gems for the two stepsisters.

    III. Adjective endings

    Attributive adjectives (the ones preceding the noun they describe) can take three different types of endings, depending on what precedes them:

    • adjectives preceded by definite articles or der-words take weak adjective endings
    • adjectives preceded by indefinite articles or ein-words take strong adjective endings
    • unpreceded adjectives take a different set of strong adjective endings

    a) adjectives after definite articles or der-words

    When an adjective comes between a definite article or der-word and the noun it modifies, it takes weak adjective endings (because the article already gives enough grammatical information to signal the noun's gender, case and number).

    Das kleine Aschenputtel wollte nur einen Zweig von einem Haselbusch; sie pflanzt den Zweig auf das Grab ihrer Mutter. The little Cinderella wanted only a twig from a hazel bush; she plants the twig on the tomb of her mother.
    Der schöne Baum ist der einzige Trost für das arme Mädchen. The beautiful tree is the only consolation for the poor little girl.

    b) adjectives preceded by indefinite articles or ein-words

    Adjectives that are preceded by an indefinite article (ein, eine, keine) or other ein-words (meine, deine, seine) receive strong endings because the article does not give enough grammatical information to signal the noun's gender, case and number.

    Ein weißes Vöglein kam jeden Tag zum Baum. white bird came to the tree every day.
    Im Reich gab es einen alten König. In the realm there was an old King.
    Er arrangierte ein großes Fest für seinen Sohn, um für ihn eine Frau zu finden. He arranged a large feast for his son, in order to find him a wife.

    adj_01_01_cin-white-bird.gif

    c) unpreceded adjectives

    Then there are some adjectives that are either not preceded by any determiners or are preceded by quantifiers such as many (viele), some (einige) or few (wenige). These adjectives take a different set of strong endings to compensate for the lacking grammatical information about the noun's gender, case and number.

    Viele schönejunge Frauen im Lande wurden eingeladen. Many beautiful young women in the kingdom were invited.
    Aschenputtel durfte nicht auf das Fest gehen; sie hatte nur schmutzige und staubige Kleider. Cinderella is not allowed to go to the feast; she only has dirtydusty clothes.
    Aber zwei weiße Täubchen kamen zu Aschenputtel und brachten ihm goldene und silberne Kleider, und es ging aufs Fest. But two white turtle doves came to Cinderella and brought her golden and silver clothes, and Cinderella went to the feast.
    Der Prinz verliebte sich in Aschenputtel und bestrich die Treppe mit klebrigem Pech, um das Mädchen bei sich zu behalten. The prince fell in love with Cinderella, and covered the stairs with sticky tar, to keep the girl with him.
    Aschenputtel lief weg, aber verlor ihren Schuh. Nach einigen falschen Versuchen findet der Prinz seine Braut und heiratet sie. Cinderella ran away, but lost her shoe. After a few false attempts, the prince finds his bride and they marry.

    IV. No declension

    There are a numbers of adjectives, mostly colors and foreign loan words, that do not take adjective endings. Interestingly, they also do not exist in comparative and superlative forms.

    beige rosa lila happy prima super

    Common adjectives

    blau blue (also: drunk)
    rot red
    grün green
    orange orange
    lila purple
    schwarz black
    weiß white
    buntfarbenfroh colorful
    schwarzweiß black and white
    dunkel dark
    stockdunkel pitch dark/pitch-black
    hell bright
    braun brown
    gelb yellow
    grau gray
    weit far
    entfernt distant
    weit entfernt far away
    nah near
    genau exact
    offen/geöffnet open
    zu/geschlossen closed
    lustig funny
    schön beautiful
    wunderschön gorgeous
    der/die/das allerschönste the most beautiful
    hübsch pretty
    übrig left over/remaining
    einfach simple
    richtig right/correct
    falsch wrong/false
    echt real/true
    derselbe the same (one and the same)
    dergleiche the same (identical)
    weitere another
    anderer/andere/anderes another
    fremd foreign/strange/unfamiliar
    neu new
    frei free
    kostenlos/kostenfrei free/at no charge
    toll great
    cool cool
    geil cool (also: horny)
    schick cool/chic
    früh early
    spät late
    alt old
    jung young
    knapp ('das war knapp!') short ('that was close')
    eng narrow/tight (clothes)
    kurz short
    lang long
    sauber clear
    dreckig dirty/muddy
    schmutzig dirty
    breit wide
    schnell fast
    blitzschnell fast as lightning
    langsam slow
    schleunig speedy
    steif stiff
    schwach weak
    stark strong
    dick thick/fat
    fett fat
    fettig greasy
    dünn thin
    schlank slim
    offen (zu) honest (with)
    intelligent intelligent
    schlau sly/sharp
    klug smart
    vernünftig reasonable/sensible
    dumm stupid/dumb
    blöd foolish/stupid
    doof dumb
    schüchtern shy
    oberflächlich superficial
    scheu shy
    interessant interesting
    schwul gay
    hetero(a) straight
    schwül humid/stuffy
    feucht humid/moist
    warm warm
    heiß hot
    kalt cold
    eiskalt ice cold/freezing
    eisig icy/frosty
    frisch fresh (food)/cool (tempearture)
    kühl cool
    neblig foggy
    regnerisch rainy
    reif ripe (also: mature)
    ausreichend adequate/sufficient
    genügend adequate/sufficient
    mangelhaft inadequate/deficient
    ausgezeichnet excellent
    gut good
    besser better
    der/die/das beste the best
    der/die/das allerbeste the very best
    gutaussehend good-looking
    feuerfest fire-proof
    Promi- VIP
    tapfer/mutig brave
    versehentlich accidental
    zuverlässig reliable
    zuversichtlich confident
    ruhig calm/quiet
    schweigsam silent (person)
    respektlos disrespectful
    brav good (child, animal)
    gemein mean
    fies mean/nasty
    mies mean/nasty
    schlecht bad (also: sick)
    schlimm bad
    übel evil (also: sick)
    böse evil (also: angry, bad [child])
    zwanglos casual/informal
    formell formal
    sauer sour (also: angry/bitter)
    stocksauer furious
    wütend angry
    süß sweet (food)/cute (person)
    lieb dear/sweet (person)
    teuer expensive
    sauteuer expensive as heck
    billig cheap
    preiswert inexpensive
    zäh tough
    salzig salty
    scharf spicy
    lecker tasty
    köstlich delicious
    satt full (having eaten enough)
    krank sick
    grippig - 'Ich fühle mich grippig' flu - 'I feel like I have the flu'
    ansteckend contagious
    schwindlig dizzy
    wacklig wobbly/(also: groggy)
    schmerzhaft painful
    wund sore
    blind blind
    taub deaf
    behindert disabled
    gelähmt paralyzed
    stumm mute
    einfallsreich imaginative/resourceful
    freundlich friendly
    komisch strange
    witzig funny
    wettbewerbsfähig competitive
    kindisch childish
    empfindlich sensitive (also: picky)
    überempfindlich hypersensitive
    rücksichtsvoll considerate
    selbstbewusst self-confident
    selbstsicher self-confident
    aufmerksam attentaive/observant
    bekannt well known
    berühmt famous
    beliebt popular
    populär popular
    hochnäsig snobby/snotty
    gebildet educated
    verbildet spoiled
    eingebildet conceited
    unverschämt imprudent/rude
    beeindruckend impressive
    beeindruckt impressed
    besonders special
    groß big
    riesig huge
    klein small
    winzig tiny
    fabelhaft wonderful
    großartig great/wonderful
    stur stubborn
    eigensinnig opinionated/obstinate
    spießig narrow-minded
    aufgeschlossen open-minded
    frankiert stamped (envelope)
    gültig valid
    endgültig final/definite
    neugierig curious
    tief deep
    hoch high
    niedrig low
    laut loud
    leise quiet
    blass pale
    bleich pale
    besoffen trashed/inebriated
    betrunken drunk
    normal normal
    beschwipst tipsy
    nüchtern sober
    akzeptabel acceptable
    unangebracht inappropriate
    angenehm pleasant
    unangenehm unpleasant
    unaufgefordert uninvited
    fassungslos stunned
    kräftig strong/hearty (meal)
    schwervorstellbar hard to imagine
    hinter back
    leer empty
    voll full (also: drunk)
    fertig finished/ready
    bereit ready
    erfinderisch inventive/innovative
    originell original/creative
    original original (the first one)
    hart hard/tough
    schwer heavy/difficult
    schwierig difficult
    leicht light/easy
    einfach simple
    trocken dry
    nass wet
    tropfnass dripping wet
    pitschnass soaking wet
    klebrig sticky
    eklig gross
    ekelhaft disgusting
    glatt smooth, slippery
    rutschig slippery
    fließend fluent
    irre crazy (slang)
    verrückt crazy
    wach awake
    hellwach wide awake
    müde tired
    erschöpft exhausted
    glücklich happy
    froh glad
    traurig sad
    deprimiert depressed
    gespannt anxious
    angespannt tense
    besonder special/exceptional
    üblich common
    herzlich sincere/cordial/hearty
    seriös serious
    ernst/ernsthaft serious
    religiös religious
    weiter further, another
    nächsternächstenächstes next, closest
    sonstig other/sundry
    seltsam strange
    täglich daily
    heutig today's
    morgig tomorrow's
    gestrig yesterday's
    jetzig current
    örtlich local
    regional regional

    This page titled 8.4.2.1: Adjectives overview is shared under a CC BY license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Zsuzsanna Abrams and co-workers (Center for Open Educational Resources and Language Learning) .

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