Demonstrative Pronouns (Demonstrativpronomen) 👉
Learn German demonstrative pronouns (dieser, jener, derselbe, solcher) used to point out or emphasize a specific noun, with the complete declension list and worked examples.
👉 Demonstrative Pronomen
Demonstrative pronouns point to or emphasize a specific person or thing.
Think of: this one / that one / these / those”
Demonstrative Pronomen Complete List:
| Purpose | German | English |
|---|---|---|
| 🗣️ Spoken pointing | der / die / das | that one / this one |
| 📍 Explicit spoken pointing | der hier / der da | this one here / that one there |
| 👆 Point to something | dieser | this / this one |
| 👉 Point to something farther away | jener | that / that one |
| 🎯 Identify a specific person/thing | derjenige | the one who/that |
| 🔁 Same identity | derselbe | the same one |
| 🧩 Particular type | solcher | such / such a |
1. 🗣️ der / die / das
that one / this one / the one
| German | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| der | that one / this one | Der ist mein Bruder. |
| die | that one / this one | Die ist meine Schwester. |
| das | that one / this one | Das ist mein Auto. |
| die | those / these | Die sind meine Freunde. |
2. 👆 der hier / der da
here / there
1. hier = Near
→ close to you 👈
- Die hier = this one here
- Die da = that one there
Examples hier
| German | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| der hier | this one here | Der hier ist mein Bruder. |
| die hier | this one here | Die hier ist meine Schwester. |
| das hier | this one here | Das hier ist mein Auto. |
| die hier | these ones here | Die hier sind meine Freunde. |
2. da = far
→ farther away 👉
- Das hier = this one here
- Das da = that one there
Examples da
| German | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| der da | that one there | Der da ist mein Bruder. |
| die da | that one there | Die da ist meine Schwester. |
| das da | that one there | Das da ist mein Auto. |
| die hier | these ones here | Die hier sind meine Freunde. |
| die da | those ones there | Die da sind meine Freunde. |
3. dieser / diese / dieses
Points to something closer to say
this/that/these/those
Used to point out specific things or people:
| Gender / Number | Nominative | English |
|---|---|---|
| 🟦 Masculine | dieser | this one |
| 🟥 Feminine | diese | this one |
| 🟨 Neuter | dieses | this one |
| 🟩 Plural | diese | these (plural) |
Dieser changes according to gender, number, and case.
| Case | 🟥 Masculine | 🟦 Neuter | 🟩 Feminine | 🟨 Plural | 🇬🇧 Example (Nom / Akk / Dat / Gen) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 👤 Nom. | dieser | dieses | diese | diese | This/that man/thing/woman/people is here. |
| 🎯 Akk. | diesen | dieses | diese | diese | I see this/that man/thing/woman/people. |
| 🎁 Dat. | diesem | diesem | dieser | diesen (-n) | I give it to this/that man/thing/woman/people. |
| 🧩 Gen. | dieses (-s/es) | dieses (-s/es) | dieser | dieser | The color of this/that man/thing/woman/people is nice. |
Dieser Pronouns also follow the same table and expand dieser, dieses, diese
| Case | 🟦 Masculine | 🟨 Neuter | 🟥 Feminine | 🟩 Plural | Mnemonic / Tip |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 👤 Nom | – | – | –e | –e | Nom = base forms, fem/plural get –e |
| 🎯 Akk | –en | – | –e | –e | Akk → masculine gets –en; others same as Nom |
| 🎁 Dat | –em | –em | –er | –en(-n) | Dat = “m, m, r, n” pattern |
| 🧩 Gen | –es | –es | –er | –er | Gen = “s, s, r, r” pattern |
Examples dieser
| German | English |
|---|---|
| Dieser Mann ist mein Lehrer. | This man is my teacher. |
| Dieses Auto ist neu. | This car is new. |
| Diese Frau ist nett. | This woman is nice. |
| Diese Bücher sind interessant. | These books are interesting. |
4. 📍 jener / jene / jenes
Points to something farther away or contrasts it with dieser (“this one”).
These are traditionally used as:
dieser= this onejener= that one
jener follows the same declension pattern as dieser, but means “that / that one” and traditionally points to something farther away.
| Case | 🟥 Masculine | 🟦 Neuter | 🟩 Feminine | 🟨 Plural | 🇬🇧 Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 👤 Nom. | jener | jenes | jene | jene | that one / those |
| 🎯 Akk. | jenen | jenes | jene | jene | that one / those |
| 🎁 Dat. | jenem | jenem | jener | jenen | to that one / those |
| 🧩 Gen. | jenes | jenes | jener | jener | of that one / those |
However, jener is much less common in every day spoken German. You will often hear der/die/das or der da/die da instead.
| dieser | Near | jener | Far |
|---|---|---|---|
| dieser Mann | this man | jener Mann | that man |
| diese Frau | this woman | jene Frau | that woman |
| dieses Auto | this car | jenes Auto | that car |
| diese Menschen | these people | jene Menschen | those people |
5. 🎯 derjenige / diejenige / dasjenige
Used for more formal and precise pointing
the one who / the one that
derjenige means “the specific person/thing who/that...”
| Gender / Number | German | English |
|---|---|---|
| 🟥 Masculine | der jenige | the one / the person who |
| 🟦 Neuter | das jenige | the one / the thing that |
| 🟩 Feminine | die jenige | the one / the person who |
| 🟨 Plural | die jenigen | those / the ones who |
Used in Pattern:
der-jenige + der ...
die-jenige + die ...
das-jenige + das ...
die-jenigen + die ...
Example derjenige
| German | English |
|---|---|
| Derjenige, der das gesagt hat, liegt falsch. | The person who said that is wrong. |
| Diejenige, die dort steht, ist meine Schwester. | The woman who is standing there is my sister. |
| Dasjenige, was du suchst, liegt auf dem Tisch. | The thing that you are looking for is on the table. |
| Diejenigen, die früh kommen, bekommen Plätze. | Those who come early get seats. |
6. 🔁 derselbe / dieselbe / dasselbe = the same
It is used when you are talking about the exact same person or thing, not merely something similar.
Do not confuse it with dieser.
| German | Meaning |
|---|---|
| dieser | this one |
| derselbe | the same one |
derselbe means “the same one / the same.”
| Gender / Number | German | English |
|---|---|---|
| 🟥 Masculine | der selbe | the same one |
| 🟦 Neuter | das selbe | the same one |
| 🟩 Feminine | die selbe | the same one |
| 🟨 Plural | die selben | the same ones |
selbe declination
(der/den/die)-selbe follows the same declension pattern as dieser
| Case | 🟥 Masculine | 🟦 Neuter | 🟩 Feminine | 🟨 Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 👤 Nom. | derselbe | dasselbe | dieselbe | dieselben |
| 🎯 Akk. | denselben | dasselbe | dieselbe | dieselben |
| 🎁 Dat. | demselben | demselben | derselben | denselben |
| 🧩 Gen. | desselben | desselben | derselben | derselben |
Example derselbe
| German | English |
|---|---|
| Derselbe Mann war gestern hier. | The same man was here yesterday. |
| Dieselbe Frau arbeitet mit mir. | The same woman works with me. |
| Dasselbe Auto steht vor dem Haus. | The same car is parked in front of the house. |
| Dieselben Leute kommen jeden Tag. | The same people come every day. |
7. 🧩 solcher / solche / solches =
It is used to refer to a particular type or kind of person or thing.
such / such a
| Gender / Number | German | English |
|---|---|---|
| 🟥 Masculine | solch-er | such a one |
| 🟦 Neuter | solch-es | such a thing |
| 🟩 Feminine | solch-e | such a one |
| 🟨 Plural | solch-e | such / such ones |
solch-e follow the same declination
| Case | 🟥 Masculine | 🟦 Neuter | 🟩 Feminine | 🟨 Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 👤 Nom. | solcher | solches | solche | solche |
| 🎯 Akk. | solchen | solches | solche | solche |
| 🎁 Dat. | solchem | solchem | solcher | solchen |
| 🧩 Gen. | solchen | solchen | solcher | solcher |
Examples Solcher
| German | English |
|---|---|
| Solcher ist selten. | Such a one is rare. |
| Solche Menschen sind hilfsbereit. | Such people are helpful. |
| Solches Verhalten ist nicht akzeptabel. | Such behavior is not acceptable. |
| Solche Probleme kenne ich. | I know such problems. |
| Ich habe noch nie einen solchen Film gesehen. | I've never seen such a movie. |
| Solche Menschen sind selten. | People like that are rare. |
Related: Pronouns Overview · Articles · Relative Pronouns
