German dieser: Declension of dieser, diese, dieses
German dieser declension: full dieser/diese/dieses paradigm, common mistakes, and how jeder, welcher, jener pattern with it. A2 reference with practice.
German dieser is the demonstrative determiner meaning "this" (or "these" in the plural). It points to a specific noun and agrees with that noun's gender, number, and case — taking exactly the same endings as the definite article der/die/das. Master one paradigm and you also master jeder, welcher, mancher, and solcher: they all follow the same pattern.
Dieser Mann ist mein Nachbar. — This man is my neighbor.
Kennst du diese Frau? — Do you know this woman?
If you already know how der, die, das change across the cases (see German articles), the dieser declension adds no new endings — only a new stem.
Quick reference: full dieser paradigm
| Case | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | dieser | diese | dieses | diese |
| Accusative | diesen | diese | dieses | diese |
| Dative | diesem | dieser | diesem | diesen |
| Genitive | dieses | dieser | dieses | dieser |
The pattern: take dies- and add the same ending that the definite article carries.
Reading the paradigm is one thing; producing diesen, diesem, or dieser on demand is another. The interactive exercise on this page drills exactly that, free of charge and without any sign-up, and it checks each ending the moment you submit your answer.
| der → dieser | die → diese | das → dieses | die (pl.) → diese |
|---|---|---|---|
| den → diesen | die → diese | das → dieses | die → diese |
| dem → diesem | der → dieser | dem → diesem | den → diesen |
What is dieser in German?
Dieser is a demonstrative determiner: it stands in front of a noun and singles it out from a group ("this book, not that one"). Three things matter every time you use it:
- Gender of the noun — der/die/das selects the ending column.
- Case — nominative, accusative, dative, or genitive selects the row.
- Number — singular vs. plural; in the plural, gender disappears and one form covers all three.
Because dieser carries a strong, unambiguous ending in every slot, the noun phrase counts as strongly inflected — meaning any adjective that follows takes the weak -e or -en ending (see adjective declension). Example: dieser alte Mann (not alter).
How do you decline dieser?
Pick the column by gender, the row by case. The masculine column is the busiest (three different endings); feminine, neuter, and plural each have one or two collapses to memorize.
Nominative (subject)
Dieser Film ist sehr gut. — This film is very good.
Diese Blume ist wunderschön. — This flower is beautiful.
Dieses Buch gehört mir. — This book belongs to me.
Diese Kinder spielen draußen. — These children play outside.
Accusative (direct object)
Only the masculine changes — exactly as der → den.
Ich kaufe diesen Mantel. — I buy this coat.
Sie liest diese Zeitung. — She reads this newspaper.
Wir nehmen dieses Zimmer. — We take this room.
Kennst du diese Leute? — Do you know these people?
Dative (indirect object, after dative prepositions)
All four columns change. The masculine and neuter share diesem; the plural ends in -en.
Ich helfe diesem Mann. — I help this man.
Sie gibt dieser Frau ein Buch. — She gives this woman a book.
Wir wohnen in diesem Haus. — We live in this house.
Er spricht mit diesen Leuten. — He speaks with these people.
For the full picture of dative forms across the noun phrase, see German articles in the dative.
Look-alike alert: dieser appears in two cells — masculine nominative and feminine dative. The noun's gender resolves the ambiguity: in *Ich helfe dieser Frau*, the feminine noun forces a dative reading.
Genitive
Less common in speech but still standard in writing. Masculine/neuter take dieses; feminine and plural take dieser.
die Meinung dieses Mannes — this man's opinion
die Farbe dieser Blume — the color of this flower
der Preis dieses Buches — the price of this book
die Namen dieser Kinder — the names of these children
The dieser family: jeder, welcher, jener, mancher, solcher
Five other determiners share the dieser pattern exactly. Learn the dieser table and you have all of them:
| Word | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| jeder | every / each | Singular only — there is no plural; use alle instead. |
| welcher | which | Used in questions: Welches Buch liest du? |
| mancher | some / many a | Often plural (manche Leute); in the singular it feels literary. |
| solcher | such | Frequently appears as solch ein + noun in the singular. |
| jener | that (yon) | Rare in modern spoken German — see below. |
Why you rarely hear jener
Textbooks pair dieser with jener as "this / that," but modern spoken German almost always replaces jener with der/die/das (often plus da or dort):
- Dieses Buch hier, das Buch da. ("This book here, that book there.") — natural.
- Dieses Buch, jenes Buch. — grammatical but sounds bookish or old-fashioned.
Use jener deliberately in contrastive written pairs ("Dieser Ansatz funktioniert, jener nicht."). In everyday speech, prefer der/die/das with a deictic adverb.
Dieser vs. der: when to choose which
Both der and dieser can translate as "this/that." The choice is about emphasis and contrast:
- der/die/das — default reference: Der Mann da drüben. (the man over there)
- dieser/diese/dieses — singles out one item versus alternatives: Dieser Mann, nicht der andere. (this man, not the other one)
If you can drop "this" in the English translation without losing meaning, you usually want the plain article in German. If "this" carries contrast, dieser is the right pick.
Common mistakes and how to avoid them
These are the dieser errors learners produce most often, with the fix in each case.
| Mistake | Why it's wrong | Correct form |
|---|---|---|
| ein dieser Mann / ein diesem Haus | Dieser is a der-word, not an ein-word. You never combine it with ein/eine. | Dieser Mann / in diesem Haus |
| dies Mann / dies Frau (no ending) | Dieser must always inflect when it stands directly before a noun. The bare form dies only works as a standalone pronoun (Dies ist mein Buch) or in fixed phrases. | Dieser Mann, diese Frau |
| dies Buch (treating neuter like ein) | The neuter nominative/accusative of dieser is dieses, not the truncated dies. The -es ending is what makes dieser a strong determiner. | dieses Buch (nom./akk.) |
| Ich kaufe dieser Mantel. | Masculine accusative changes der → den, so dieser → diesen. | Ich kaufe diesen Mantel. |
| mit diese Leuten / bei diese Kindern | Dative plural always ends in -n on the determiner, parallel to den. | mit diesen Leuten / bei diesen Kindern |
| Jener Mann hat angerufen. (in conversation) | Grammatical but sounds stiff and formal in modern spoken German. | Der Mann (da) hat angerufen. |
| dieser alter Mann (strong adjective ending) | Dieser already carries the strong ending, so the adjective drops to weak -e in the nominative singular. | dieser alte Mann |
The thread: dieser behaves like der, not like ein. Whenever you would inflect der, inflect dieser the same way.
How dieser fits into the noun phrase
Because dieser is a der-word, its strong ending forces every following adjective into the weak declension (-e / -en). Compare:
- ein alter Mann (no determiner ending → adjective takes strong -er)
- dieser alte Mann (dieser carries -er → adjective drops to weak -e)
Learners who try to add a strong ending to the adjective produce dieser alter Mann, which sounds doubly marked. The rule is one strong ending per noun phrase, and dieser already provides it. See adjective declension for the full strong/weak/mixed picture, and German noun gender for picking the right column in the first place.
10 exercises on this rule · about 5 min
Frequently asked questions
What does dieser mean in German?
German dieser means "this" (or "these" in the plural). It is a demonstrative determiner that points to a specific person or thing already in view or just mentioned, and it always stands in front of a noun whose gender, number, and case it agrees with.
How do you decline dieser in German?
Dieser takes the same endings as the definite article der/die/das. In the singular: dieser (masc. nom.), diesen (masc. akk.), diesem (masc./neut. dat.); diese (fem./pl. nom. and akk.), dieser (fem. dat.); dieses (neut. nom. and akk.). The plural dative is diesen.
What is the difference between dieser and jener?
Dieser means "this" (near, just mentioned). Jener means "that" (further away, contrastive). In modern spoken German, jener is rare and sounds formal or literary — speakers prefer der/die/das or der da / der dort instead. Use dieser freely; reserve jener for written contrast pairs ("dieser… jener…").
Is dieser the same pattern as jeder and welcher?
Yes. Jeder ("every"), welcher ("which"), mancher ("some"), and solcher ("such") all belong to the der-word group and take exactly the same endings as dieser. Learn one paradigm, apply it to the whole group.
Why is dieser sometimes diesen?
Diesen is the masculine accusative singular and the dative plural. Masculine accusative changes (parallel to der → den), so "Ich kaufe diesen Mantel." Dative plural always ends in -n on both the determiner and the noun: "mit diesen Leuten".
Do dieser and der take the same endings?
Yes — that is the whole point of the der-word class. Wherever der appears, dieser uses dies- plus the same ending: der → dieser, den → diesen, dem → diesem, des → dieses, die → diese, der (fem. dat.) → dieser. Only the genitive masculine/neuter form dieses ends in -es rather than -s.
Where can I practise the dieser declension for free?
Try the interactive exercise built into this page. It quizzes you on dieser/diese/dieses/diesem/diesen across all four cases, runs free with no sign-up, and flags the right column-and-row ending as soon as you answer.