Adjective endings are the little letters that carry big meaning in German: they show gender, number, and case. If you’ve ever hesitated between schöne/schönen/schönes, this post will finally make those choices feel natural. We’ll focus on the three big patterns—weak (with der-words), mixed (with ein-words), and strong (with no article)—and practice them in everyday contexts like shopping and small talk.

Why endings matter in real life

German often puts adjectives before nouns, and the right ending tells your listener exactly who/what/which we mean. On signs and menus you’ll see no-article phrases like “Frisches Brot” and in conversations you’ll hear article phrases like “der gute Kaffee” or “ein gutes Buch.” Understanding endings helps you:

• Sound confident and precise
• Decode meaning quickly in newspapers and official texts
• Form natural-sounding noun phrases in daily life

Let’s map the territory before we dive into examples.

Weak endings: der-words (definite/article-like)

When you use der, die, das (and words like dieser, jeder), the article already carries the grammar load. So the adjective is “weak”: mostly -e in the singular nominative and -en elsewhere.

• Nominative singular: der gute Kaffee, die schöne Wohnung, das neue Auto
• Accusative singular: den guten Kaffee, die schöne Wohnung, das neue Auto
• Dative singular: dem guten Kaffee, der schönen Wohnung, dem neuen Auto
• Plural (all cases): die guten Bücher; mit den guten Büchern

Use this pattern anytime you’re talking about specific, known things.

Ich suche den Kaffee.

Wir essen die Äpfel.

der groß Mann → der große Mann Nominative masculine with der-word: -e

Common der-word mistakes

• Forgetting -en in plural: say die guten Leute, not die gute Leute
• Dropping -en in dative: mit dem guten Wein (not mit dem gute Wein)

If you’re unsure, -en is a safe bet in plural and most non-nominative cases with der-words.

Mixed endings: ein-words (ein, mein, kein, etc.)

Ein-words don’t always show case/gender clearly, so the adjective sometimes must. Think of it as a teamwork pattern: the article and the adjective share the job.

Key examples:

• Nominative masculine: ein guter Kaffee (article doesn’t show masculinity—adjective takes strong -er)
• Nominative neuter: ein gutes Brot (adjective takes strong -es)
• Nominative feminine: eine gute Idee (article shows femininity—adjective takes weak -e)
• Accusative masculine: einen guten Kaffee (article shows case—adjective takes weak -en)
• Accusative neuter: ein gutes Auto (strong -es)
• Dative singular: einem guten Freund / einer guten Freundin (weak -en/-e depending, but adjectives are typically -en in dative)
• Plural with kein/possessives: keine guten Bücher; meinen guten Freunden (plural adjectives are -en)

This pattern appears constantly with possession (mein, dein, sein…) and negation (kein).

ein schöne Auto → ein schönes Auto Nominative neuter with ein-word: strong -es

Strong endings: no article

When there’s no article, the adjective endings must carry all the info. You’ll see this on signs, menus, headlines, and descriptions.

• Nominative: frischer Kaffee (m), gute Musik (f), kaltes Bier (n), rote Äpfel (pl)
• Accusative masculine: Ich trinke frischen Kaffee.
• Dative: mit frischem Kaffee, mit guter Musik, mit kaltem Bier, mit roten Äpfeln

Try noticing these phrases out in the wild.

Put it together: quick patterns you can trust

When you’re unsure, ask: what shows the grammar—article or adjective?

• Der-words show it → adjective weak (-e/-en)
• Ein-words sometimes don’t → adjective strong where article is “weak” (ein guter, ein gutes), weak where article is “strong” (einen guten)
• No article → adjective strong (frischer, frisches, gute, roten)

Practice a little every day and these endings will start to feel automatic.

Mit Freunden macht Lernen mehr Spaß.

keine neu Bücher → keine neuen Bücher Plural with kein-word → -en on adjectives

Final tips

• Read signs and menus: note strong endings without articles.
• In conversation, listen for der/ein words first; then choose -e/-en or strong endings.
• Learn set phrases: der nächste Zug, meine kleinen Kinder, gutes Essen.

You’ve got this! With a few daily reps, adjective endings will become second nature. Keep noticing them in context—and speak up with confidence.