Teaching guidelines +/- 15 minutes

Learn the use of German personal pronouns in the accusative case, which replace the direct object in sentences. This lesson covers singular and plural forms, key pronouns like "mich", "dich", and "ihn", and notes on formal address. Explore differences between English and German pronouns and practice common phrases to understand their usage effectively.
  1. In the accusative case, the form of the personal pronoun changes depending on the person and number.
Person (Person)Singular (Singular)Person (Person)Plural (Plural)
IchMichWirUns
DuDich IhrEuch
ErIhn SieSie
SieSie
EsEs 

Exceptions!

  1. "Sie" is always capitalised as a formal form of address, even in the accusative case.

Exercise 1: Personalpronomen - Akkusativ

Instruction: Fill in the correct word.

Show translation Show answers

sie, uns, euch, ihn, Sie, mich

1. Sie (Plural):
: Er hat ... gestern vormittag getroffen.
(He met her yesterday morning.)
2. Ihr:
: Wir haben ... gestern nicht gesehen.
(We did not see you yesterday.)
3. Sie (Singular):
: Er kennt ... sehr gut.
(He knows her very well.)
4. Ich:
: Du hast ... am Donnerstag angerufen.
(You called me on Thursday.)
5. Sie (höfliche Anrede):
: Ich sehe ... dann am Montag!
(I will see you then on Monday!)
6. Ich:
: Sie hört ... nicht.
(She does not hear me.)
7. Wir:
: Sie sieht ... heute Nachmittag.
(She sees us this afternoon.)
8. Er:
: Ich verstehe ... sehr gut.
(I understand him very well.)

Exercise 2: Multiple Choice

Instruction: Choose the correct solution

1. ___ Montag habe ich um 9 Uhr ein Meeting.

(___ Monday I have a meeting at 9 o'clock.)

2. ___ Mai beginnt unser neues Projekt.

(___ May our new project starts.)

3. ___ halb acht trinke ich meinen Kaffee.

(___ half past seven I drink my coffee.)

4. ___ der Arbeit treffe ich meine Kollegen.

(___ work I meet my colleagues.)

5. ___ einem Monat lerne ich Deutsch.

(___ a month I have been learning German.)

6. ___ nächster Woche arbeite ich im Büro.

(___ next week I work in the office.)

Understanding Personal Pronouns in the Accusative Case

This lesson focuses on the use of personal pronouns in the accusative case in German. These pronouns replace the direct object in a sentence and indicate the person, number, and gender.

Accusative Forms of Personal Pronouns

The form of the personal pronoun changes depending on whether it is singular or plural and on its grammatical function as a direct object. For example, the pronoun ich (I) changes to mich (me), du (you, informal singular) changes to dich, and er (he) changes to ihn, among others.

Key Pronouns to Remember

  • Ich – Mich (I – me)
  • Du – Dich (you – you)
  • Er – Ihn (he – him)
  • Sie – Sie (she – her)
  • Es – Es (it – it)
  • Wir – Uns (we – us)
  • Ihr – Euch (you, plural informal – you)
  • Sie – Sie (they – them)
  • Sie – Sie (formal you – you)

Special Notes

Note that "Sie" when used as formal address is always capitalized, even in the accusative case. This helps distinguish it from other uses of "sie" meaning "she" or "they".

Comparing English and German Personal Pronouns

Unlike English, German pronouns change their form depending on their grammatical case. In English, pronouns like "I" or "he" become "me" or "him" primarily in objective positions, similar to German, but German has additional case distinctions that might affect endings and spelling. For example, the English "you" remains the same for subject and object, but in German "du" becomes "dich" in the accusative.

Useful phrases to practice include:

  • Ich sehe dich. – "I see you."
  • Du liebst ihn. – "You love him."
  • Sie ruft uns an. – "She calls us."

These examples show how changing the pronoun to the accusative case provides clarity about who is affected by the action.

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Sophie Schmidt

International Administration Management

Würzburger Dolmetscherschule

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Last Updated:

Monday, 14/07/2025 22:16