36 Introduction to German Cases Part 2
The Names and Basic Usages of the 4 German Cases (Fälle)
2024-05-15 13 min
Description & Show Notes
In this episode, you will learn the names and basic usages of each of the four cases of the German language.
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Summary
In this episode of Better German, host Susi Blumel continues her mini-series on cases in the German language. She emphasizes the importance of understanding cases, while also acknowledging the challenges they may pose to beginners. Susi breaks down the four cases in German - nominative, genitive, dative, and accusative - providing a brief explanation of each and offering insights into their usage. She also hints at a cheat sheet for a clearer understanding of cases and invites listeners to sign up for the newsletter to stay updated. In the next episode, she promises to delve into how specific prepositions in German correspond to different cases. If you're struggling with German cases, this episode is a must-listen!
Key Points Explored🔎
Primary Topic: Introduction to Cases
- Importance of understanding cases in learning German
- Recognition of challenges for beginners when encountering cases
- Overview of different types of cases in the German language
Primary Topic: The 4 Cases in German
- Nominative case (basic form, naming the subject)
- Genitive case (possession, something belonging to or with someone)
- Dative case (used when an action goes over to something, after the verb)
- Accusative case (used for the object of the sentence)
Primary Topic: Learning Sequence of Cases
- Suggested learning sequence for cases in German language
- Discussion of learning priorities for beginner, intermediate, and advanced students
Primary Topic: Determining the Case to be Used
- Understanding what determines which case is used
- Emphasis on the accusative case as the most frequently used case
Primary Topic: Verbs and Cases
- Relationship between verbs and cases
- Focus on how most verbs use the accusative case
Primary Topic: Prepositions and Cases
- Discussion of how each preposition requires a specific case
- Explanation of the relationship between prepositions and cases
Primary Topic: Introduction to German Beginners Course
- Reference to a German beginners course as an alternative approach to learning the German language
- Emphasis on simplified language learning approach without extensive use of grammar rules
The podcast episode provides a detailed overview of cases in the German language, including the identification of each case, the learning sequence, determining the case to be used, the relationship between verbs and cases, as well as the influence of prepositions on cases. Additionally, it presents an alternative approach to learning German through a specific beginners course.
Related Episodes
Related Episodes
Episode 5: Introduction to German Articles
Episode 35: Introduction to German Cases Part 1
Episode 37: Introduction to German Cases
Other Resources 📚
- Download this PDF on Introduction to German cases that will provide you with an understanding of what they are, and tables of cases. But that’s only the beginning. You will get explanations of the basic meanings of all cases and tables of Verbs with Dativ, and the most important prepositions with the needed cases. ALL OF THAT WITH TRANSLATED EXAMPLE SENTENCES! Master German Cases today!
- Check out our Interactive German Movie Guide with suitable TV shows and movies with subtitles in your language, so you can start using movies to learn right away!
- Listen to All The Episodes Published So Far!
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Transcript
Welcome to the Better German podcast.
My name is Susi Blümel, and I will teach
you German and everything around the
language , the countries and the culture.
Welcome to this new episode.
This is number two of my mini series
on cases, and if you haven't listened
to the last episode, which is the
first of the miniseries about cases
then I suggest you to do that.
You can find it by going
on bettergerman.info/35,
because it's episode 35.
Also I want to start right away, if
you're confused about cases and learning
German, I highly suggest you to take
a look at my German beginner's course.
In my courses you will learn how to
make correct sentences, but you will
deal with no theoretical grammar
rules, and will learn how to build
sentences in a more natural way,
like you learned your own language.
So, go to bettergerman.info/courses,
and there you will find the info on
how to enroll in the very new, I'm very
proud of it, German beginner's course.
And if you want to hear more about
this approach with less grammar,
then I suggest you to listen to the
podcast episode that I made about it.
It's the podcast Episode 8.
and it's called How
Much Grammar do We Need?
You can find it by going on
bettergerman.info/8, or just
finding Episode eight, wherever
you're listening to this podcast.
And this one you can also find on YouTube.
All right.
So let's get into this next
part of What are Cases.
Maybe you're wondering why am I
even making these episodes, if I
don't believe in teaching them?
First of all it's not entirely true.
Cases are a phenomenon in the German
language and you will have to learn
them if you want to learn German.
However, it's more a question of
how you teach them and if you're a
beginner, German beginner and you get
thrown at a lot of rules, and maybe
they're not even properly explained,
then it will be very hard for you.
If you have a language that has cases
and you are very familiar with your own
grammar, maybe this is not going to be
a problem for you, but in that case, you
will probably not listen to this episode.
I'm doing this episode because I
feel for all the students that try to
learn German and have troubles because
they're running into things they don't
understand, and one of the things that
you may run into or maybe have run
into, or could run into his cases.
So that's why I'm doing this
mini series about what are they.
So, the next thing we're
going over is, what are these?
We have four of them, and I'm going
to tell you the name of them and
I'm going to give you a little bit
of an idea of each one's usage.
At the end of the entire series,
there is going to be a cheat sheet.
I'm working on it.
There's going to be a cheat sheet about
cases, which is going to be a summary,
with written up examples, of what I'm
going to go over in these episodes.
So definitely continue listening,
and if you want to just make
sure that you don't miss it, then
just sign up for the newsletter.
Okay.
Let's going to this episode.
and the cases.
We have four of them.
Traditionally they're numbered.
I'm going to give you a very short
explanation of each of the cases.
So the first case is
called "der Nominativ".
"Nominativ" basically means,
"that's giving the name."
So that's the name of the word
and that's what you are learning
when you are learning a vocabulary
thing, like when you're learning a
new word, or when you look in the
dictionary, that's the basic form.
In German we usually, use the article
with it, "der", "die" and "das" are
the articles that go with the nouns.
These are the basic forms.
"Der Mann" that's the
basic form, "the man,"
Or "der Computer".
In a sentence, when we use this
basic form, then it means that
this is the thing that is, doing
something, to keep it simple.
So that's the, "Nominativ,"
the first case.
The second case, is called "der Genitiv".
It's actually, if you learn German usually
the one that you the last, because it
is not used as often as the others and,
it's hardly used in spoken communication.
But what it is, it's basically when
you say something like "Peter's dog."
So "Peter's" that you would write
with apostrophe and then 's' —Peter's.
That would be in German, "der Genitiv".
And it's actually similar for many
words, you just add an s for names for
example, and then you have the "Genitiv,"
so Maria's Peter's blah, blah, blah.
The basic meaning of it is
something belongs to someone or
something belongs with someone.
So when I say "Peter's daughter,"
—"Peter's Tochter," she doesn't
belong to him, she belongs with
him, there is a connection.
So that's the second case, the Genitiv.
You probably learned it in a
different sequence, I'm going
to tell it to you in a second.
So the third case is the "Dativ."
For the beginning you just "learn the
specific verbs that want this case.
And everything else is the "Akkusativ."
And the "Akkusativ" is the fourth case.
And it is the case that you use
in most cases, when you have a
sentence and you have more than
just a two words sentence, like
"The dogs sleeps" —"Der Hund schläft",
three words, but you have a sentence like.
"I see the tree" - "Ich sehe den Baum"..
Oder (or) "He drinks coffee" - "Er
trinkt Kaffee", then this thing,
"coffee" (Kaffee), "den Baum", that
is "Akkusativ." So whenever you have
an action of the verb, going over to
something, then it's usually "Akkusativ."
So these are the meanings.
So when you learn German, and also
in my courses, how you learn it,
you learn first, the "Nominativ,"
which is every word, the basic form.
Then you learn "Akkusativ," which
is the form which is used most,
other than the basic form.
And it's the form that is
used when an action in the
sentence goes over to something.
So when you have more than an
extremely short sentence, you
usually have an "Akkusativ" case.
And then you learn the "Dativ"
and then the last one is the
"Genitiv," that's quite advanced.
So before you're quite an advanced
student, you probably don't bother
about the "Genitiv." By the way that
doesn't mean that the "Genitiv" is
not used at all, some people say that,
I disagree, but it's used less than
the others and it is used very little
in day-to-day spoken communication.
Now we have a little bit of an
understanding, as I said, you
can download the cheat sheet.
that will give you a
better understanding even.
So now let's look what determines
which case, which is the most
important thing for you to understand.
Now that you understand why we even have
these cases, the most important thing for
you to understand is, what's determines
then, what causes which case to be used.
If you have a sentence, anything
more than a two-part sentence, so
when you have: "I see the tree.
She likes the dog.
I feed the cat.
I cooked dinner." All of these things
after the verb, are "Akkusativ."
So I'll give you a few examples.
"Ich sehe das Bild".. I see the
picture."— "Das Bild" is Akkusativ.
"Ich liebe meinen Mann."
"I love my husband."
"Meinen Mann" is "Akkusativ."
"Ich kaufe das Kleid."
"I buy the dress."
"Das Kleid" is "Akkusativ."
So that's something you need to know.
The most changes regarding
"Akkusativ" are if the word is
"der" so if it's a "male" word.
Then you learn which verbs, which
special verbs, and the most frequent
ones are just 20 or 30, want "Dativ."
So to give you a short summary, the
"Nominativ," the first case is the
thing that we talk about in the sentence.
The "Genitiv," which is the second
case for some reason, I don't know who
made up the sequence, is something that
you will not learn until you're quite
a little bit more advanced, and it
shows possession as its basic meaning.
Then the most important case and the
one other than the "Nominativ" you
will learn first, is the "Akkusativ,"
it's numbered the fourth case.
The "Akkusativ" is the case that you're
going to use most, and for most sentences
that have an object in the grammar sense.
Meaning, something that the activity
of the sentence is going over.
And that is, the most used case and
basically how you learn this is you
can safely assume that most verbs
will use "Akkusativ," except for
a list of maybe 20, at least for a
beginner, that you will just learn.
And these other cases, they want
"Dativ." So this is the basic thing
about cases, the verbs wanting cases.
And then there is, a whole other
thing that I'm going to go in a little
bit in the next episode, and that
is certain small words like "in, on,
under, with, by" and things like that.
In English they're called prepositions,
in German they're called "Präpositionen."
And each one of these prepositions
in German asks for a specific case
and that's something I'm going to
start going into in the next episode.
And again, if you're looking for a
course, which makes this a little
bit simpler, and doesn't use so
many big grammar words, then take a
look at my German Beginners Course.
I'm going to link it in the show notes
and, hear you or I hope that you hear
me in the next episode is a pleasure
for me to talk to you as always.
Bye-bye.