Exercise 9: Plural of Nouns (Plural der Nomen)

📚 Theory: Singular and Plural

When nouns refer to only one item grammatically they are in the singular form. If you talk about more than one item you use the plural: ein Auto (a car, singular) → zwei Autos (two cars, plural).

English vs German: In English it is relatively easy to form the plural forms of nouns – normally you only add '-s': 'a cigarette' → 'two cigarettes'. German has several ways of forming the plural. It is therefore advisable to learn a new word with its plural form. But as with gender there are patterns for typical endings.
Masculine Nouns

Adding -e

The great majority of masculine nouns form their plural by just adding -e:

der Beruf → die Berufe (jobs)
der Film → die Filme (films)

Umlaut + -e

Often an umlaut is added when the original stem vowel is a, o or u:

der Ball → die Bälle
der Zug → die Züge

No change (nouns ending in -er, -el, -en)

Nouns ending in -er, -el or -en have no change or sometimes add an umlaut:

der Kuchen → die Kuchen (no change)
der Apfel → die Äpfel (umlaut only)
Remember: These are only guidelines. There are irregular endings such as der Mann → die Männer.
Feminine Nouns

Adding -n or -en

The huge majority of feminine nouns add -n or -en:

die Frau → die Frauen
die Zeitung → die Zeitungen
die Tasse → die Tassen

Umlaut + -e

A number of commonly used feminine nouns add umlaut + -e:

die Hand → die Hände
die Stadt → die Städte
Note: Mutter and Tochter only add an umlaut: die Mutter → die Mütter; die Tochter → die Töchter.
Neuter Nouns

Adding -e

Most neuter nouns add -e but no umlaut:

das Bein → die Beine
das Jahr → die Jahre

Umlaut + -er

Another common ending is -er, with an umlaut where the original stem vowel is a, o or u:

das Kind → die Kinder
das Buch → die Bücher

No change (-chen, -lein)

Nouns ending in -chen or -lein do not change (these are diminutives):

das Mädchen → die Mädchen
Foreign Words

Adding -s

Foreign words which are 'imported' into German from English or French usually add -s:

der Chef → die Chefs
die Party → die Partys
das Team → die Teams

📖 How to Read Dictionary Entries

If you do not know the plural form of a noun you can look it up in a dictionary. The plural form is usually given in third place following the gender and the genitive ending of the noun:

Beruf m, -(e)s, -e
Click on each colored part above to see what it means. Here the plural is given as -e: Berufe
Gender (m/f/nt)
Genitive ending
Plural ending
Reise f, -, -n → Plural: die Reisen (journey, trip)
Vater m, -s, -¨ → Plural: die Väter (umlaut only)
Hand f, -, -¨e → Plural: die Hände (umlaut + -e)
Tip: If you see -¨, this means that an umlaut is needed on the stem vowel (a→ä, o→ö, u→ü).

📝 Summary of Plural Endings

Ending Gender Example Pattern
-e Masc. & Neuter der Film → die Filme
das Bier → die Biere		 Most common
-e + umlaut Masc. & Feminine der Ball → die Bälle
die Hand → die Hände		 a→ä, o→ö, u→ü
-er (+ umlaut) Neuter (mostly) das Buch → die Bücher
das Kind → die Kinder		 + umlaut if possible
-n / -en Feminine (~90%) die Sprache → die Sprachen
die Frau → die Frauen		 Vast majority
-s Foreign words die Party → die Partys English/French loanwords
no ending Masc/Neuter das Mädchen → die Mädchen
der Spiegel → die Spiegel		 -chen, -lein, -el, -en, -er

🛠️ Interactive Practice Tools

Plural Builder

Build the plural form step by step:

Enter the noun with its article (der/die/das)
Ending Predictor

Enter a noun ending to predict its plural type:

Visual Noun Cards (Click to flip)

✍️ Exercises

Exercise 9.1: Dictionary Codes

Use the given information and write out the plural form. Example: Messer nt, - → die Messer

Exercise 9.2: Plural Forms

Give the plural form of the following nouns. Example: die Flasche → die Flaschen

Exercise 9.3: Pattern Recognition

Identify the typical endings used in Exercise 9.2 examples by gender:

1
2
3
Exercise 9.4: Translations

Translate the following sentences into German:

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✅ Checklist

  1. How do most masculine nouns form the plural? (Usually add -e, sometimes with umlaut)
  2. How do most feminine nouns form the plural? (Add -n or -en)
  3. How do most neuter nouns form the plural? (Add -e or -er with umlaut)
  4. How do most foreign words form the plural? (Add -s)
  5. Where do you find information on how the plural is formed in a dictionary entry? (Third position after gender and genitive)
Tips: For more information on gender see Unit 8. For cases and articles see Units 10-14.