Adjective declension after der/das/die

When an adjective comes between a definite article (der, das, die) and a noun, it takes what grammarians call the weak declension. The definite article already carries clear gender and case information, so the adjective ending is reduced to one of just two forms: -e or -en. The rule is straightforward: use -e in the nominative singular and in the feminine and neuter accusative singular; use -en everywhere else.

Apply weak adjective endings whenever all three of the following conditions are met:

• A definite article is present. The article must be one of der, das, die, den, dem, des (or their plural forms). If there is no article, or the article is indefinite (ein, eine), different endings apply.

• The adjective directly precedes the noun. Predicative adjectives (Das Auto ist neu.) never take these endings.

• Any gender, any case, singular or plural. The weak pattern covers all four cases (nominative, accusative, dative, genitive) and all three genders, as well as the plural.

The table below shows the ending added to the adjective stem for each gender and case. The example adjective is neu (new).

• Doubling the article ending onto the adjective. Because der ends in -er, learners sometimes write «*der neuer Kollege» or «*das kleines Kind». The article already signals gender and case; the adjective only needs -e here. Correct forms: der neue Kollege, das kleine Kind.

• Using -e in the plural. The plural definite article is die, which also appears in the feminine singular, so learners carry over the singular ending and write «*die kleine Kinder». All plural slots — regardless of case — require -en. Correct form: die kleinen Kinder.

• Forgetting -en in the masculine accusative. The masculine accusative article changes from der to den, and the adjective must also shift to -en. Writing «*Ich nehme den grüne Pullover» is a common slip. Correct form: Ich nehme den grünen Pullover.