Personalpronomen (Personal Pronouns)

Introduction

Personal pronouns in German vary based on grammatical case, number, and formality. Understanding these variations is crucial for constructing correct sentences and expressing yourself accurately in German.

Let's start with two helpful videos on German personal pronouns:

Nominative Case Pronouns

Accusative Case Pronouns

Dative Case Pronouns

Key Concepts

1. Overview of Personal Pronouns

German has four grammatical cases: Nominative, Accusative, Dative, and Genitive. Each case changes the form of personal pronouns.

Nominative Case (Subject of the Sentence)

English	Singular	Plural
I	ich	—
You (informal)	du	ihr
He	er	—
She	sie	—
It	es	—
We	wir	—
You (formal)	Sie	Sie
They	sie	sie

Examples:

• Ich gehe zur Schule. (I go to school.)
• Sie ist meine Freundin. (She is my friend.)

2. Pronouns in All Cases

Accusative Case (Direct Object)

English	Singular	Plural
Me	mich	—
You (informal)	dich	euch
Him	ihn	—
Her	sie	—
It	es	—
Us	uns	—
You (formal)	Sie	Sie
Them	sie	sie

Examples:

• Kannst du mich hören? (Can you hear me?)
• Ich sehe ihn. (I see him.)

Dative Case (Indirect Object)

English	Singular	Plural
To me	mir	—
To you (informal)	dir	euch
To him	ihm	—
To her	ihr	—
To it	ihm	—
To us	uns	—
To you (formal)	Ihnen	Ihnen
To them	ihnen	ihnen

Examples:

• Gib mir das Buch. (Give me the book.)
• Ich schenke ihnen Blumen. (I give them flowers.)

Genitive Case (Possession)

English	Singular	Plural
My	meiner	—
Your (informal)	deiner	eurer
His	seiner	—
Her	ihrer	—
Its	seiner	—
Our	unserer	—
Your (formal)	Ihrer	Ihrer
Their	ihrer	ihrer

Examples:

• Trotz meiner Hilfe konnte er es nicht schaffen. (Despite my help, he couldn't manage it.)

3. Formal and Informal "You"

• "du": informal singular
• "ihr": informal plural
• "Sie": formal (both singular and plural)

Examples:

• Sprichst du Deutsch? (Do you speak German? - informal)
• Sprechen Sie Deutsch? (Do you speak German? - formal)

4. Reflexive Pronouns

Used when the subject and object of the sentence are the same:

Reflexive Pronouns

English	Singular	Plural
Myself	mich/mir	—
Yourself	dich/dir	euch
Himself	sich	—
Herself	sich	—
Itself	sich	—
Ourselves	uns	—
Yourselves	euch	euch
Themselves	sich	sich

Examples:

• Ich wasche mich. (I wash myself.)
• Er erinnert sich an die Reise. (He remembers the trip.)

Interactive Practice

Let's practice using personal pronouns with this interactive exercise:

Create a sentence using a personal pronoun:

Key Rules to Remember

1. Always use "Sie" for formal interactions and "du" for informal ones.
2. Make sure the pronoun matches the case required by the verb.
3. Use reflexive pronouns when the subject and object of a verb are the same.

Additional Resources

• Recommend in telegram.

Next Steps

After mastering personal pronouns, move on to Die Zahlen (Numbers) to learn how to count and use numbers in German sentences.