The Dative Case After Common Prepositions

A third case: the dative

You already know two cases: the nominative for the subject of a sentence and the accusative for the direct object. German has a third case you cannot avoid at A1: the dative.

The dative has several jobs in German, but at A1 you meet it almost entirely in one situation: after certain prepositions. A small group of very common prepositions always takes the dative, no matter what. If you learn this group and the dative article forms, you can handle most everyday sentences about transport, origin, destinations and people.

The good news: you do not have to decide anything. After these prepositions, the dative is automatic. That makes this lesson mostly a matter of memorising two small tables: the list of prepositions and the dative article forms. Once both are solid, sentences like "Ich fahre mit dem Bus zur Arbeit" build themselves, because every choice in them is fixed.

• Ich fahre mit dem Bus.

  I go by bus.

  mit always takes the dative

• Sie kommt aus der Türkei.

  She comes from Turkey.

The dative article forms

In the dative, the definite articles change like this: der becomes dem (masculine), die becomes der (feminine), das becomes dem (neuter), and the plural die becomes den. In the dative plural, the noun itself usually adds an -n as well: mit den Kindern (with the children).

The indefinite articles follow the same pattern: ein becomes einem (masculine and neuter) and eine becomes einer (feminine). The possessive articles you know, like mein and dein, take exactly the same endings: meinem Bruder, meiner Schwester, meinem Kind, meinen Eltern.

Notice one trap: der in the dative is the feminine form. In "mit der Frau" the word der belongs to die Frau, not to a masculine noun.

• Ich spreche mit dem Lehrer.

  I am speaking with the teacher.

  der Lehrer, masculine, dative dem

• Er wohnt bei einer Freundin.

  He lives at a female friend's place.

  eine Freundin, feminine, dative einer

• Wir spielen mit den Kindern.

  We are playing with the children.

  dative plural: den + noun with -n

• Sie fährt mit ihrem Auto.

  She drives her car.

  possessive: ihrem, neuter dative

The dative prepositions: mit, nach, aus, zu, von, bei, seit

Learn this group by heart; each one always takes the dative. mit means with or by (transport): mit dem Zug. nach is used for direction to cities and most countries and in the phrase nach Hause: nach Berlin, nach Deutschland. aus means from or out of, especially for origin: aus dem Iran, aus der Schweiz. zu means to, for people, shops and buildings: zu meiner Schwester, zum Arzt. von means from or of: von meinem Bruder. bei means at (a person's place, a company or nearby): bei meinen Eltern, bei Aldi. seit means since or for with time: seit einem Jahr.

Many learners memorise them as a rhythm: mit, nach, aus, zu, von, bei, seit. Say the list out loud a few times until it sticks.

Watch the difference between nach and zu, because both translate as "to". nach is for cities, countries and home (nach Paris, nach Hause); zu is for people, shops and buildings inside a town (zu Anna, zum Supermarkt). Choosing between them is a favourite A1 exam point.

• Wir fahren mit dem Zug nach Hamburg.

  We are going to Hamburg by train.

• Ich wohne seit einem Jahr in Deutschland.

  I have been living in Germany for a year.

• Das Geschenk ist von meiner Oma.

  The present is from my grandma.

• Am Wochenende bin ich bei meinen Eltern.

  At the weekend I am at my parents' place.

Contractions: zum, zur, beim, vom

German speakers almost always merge some preposition + article combinations into one short word. zu dem becomes zum, zu der becomes zur, bei dem becomes beim, and von dem becomes vom.

These contractions are not slang; they are the normal written and spoken forms. "Ich gehe zu dem Arzt" sounds odd; "Ich gehe zum Arzt" is what people actually say. Use zur for feminine nouns: zur Schule, zur Arbeit. When you learn destinations as phrases (zum Bahnhof, zur Post, beim Arzt), the dative comes for free.

• Ich gehe heute zum Arzt.

  I am going to the doctor today.

  zum = zu dem

• Anna fährt jeden Tag zur Arbeit.

  Anna goes to work every day.

  zur = zu der

• Er ist gerade beim Friseur.

  He is at the hairdresser's right now.

  beim = bei dem