Accusative Pronouns For Intermediate learners
What is an Accusative Pronoun?
In German grammar, an accusative pronoun is used in order to replace the direct object of a sentence. A direct object is a noun (a person, animal, or thing) that is the direct receiver of a certain action. In order to understand accusative pronouns better, you should first know about the Accusative Case.
What is the Accusative Case?
Accusative case in German shows the direct object of a sentence. In the sentence: "I see the cat", "the cat" is the direct object. In German, the article of the noun changes based on its case. In other words, the German article of "cat" as the subject of the word, is different from its article when it is used as the direct object.
Ich kaufe das Buch.
I buy the book.
Das Buch: Direct Object (noun)
The German Accusative Pronouns
The table below shows the Accusative Pronouns in German:
Accusative | |
|---|---|
me (informal) | mich |
you | dich |
him/her/it | ihn/sie/es |
us | uns |
you (informal) | euch |
them | sie |
you (formal) | Sie |
Wir hören die Musik. ➡ Wir hören sie.
We hear the music. ➡ We hear it.
direct object: die Musik (noun) ➡ sie (pronoun)
Der Lehrer ruft mich.
The teacher calls me.
Ich kaufe es.
I buy it.
Nominative vs. Accusative
The table below makes a comparison between nominative and accusative pronouns:
Nominative | Accusative |
|---|---|
ich | mich |
du | dich |
er/sie/es | ihn/sie/es |
wir | uns |
ihr | euch |
sie | sie |
Sie | Sie |
Accusative case vs. Dative case
Let's take a look at their role in a sentence. Both of these cases are known to be the object of a sentence. The accusative is the direct object, which means it's the direct receiver of the action of the verb.
Ich schreibe den Brief.
I am writing the letter.
The letter: direct object (accusative)
Dative, however, is known to be the indirect object. It is usually the person or a thing that gets something. You can often find the indirect object by asking "to whom" or "for whom"?
Sie gibt das Buch dem Kind.
She gives the book to the child.
Give to whom? ➡ to "the child": indirect object (dative)
Der Mann gibt dem Kind das Buch.
The man gives the child the book.
das Buch: accusative - dem Kind: Dative
Rules of Placement
Dative nouns come before accusative nouns.
Ich gebe dem Kind den Ball.
I give the child the ball.
dem Kind (Dat) - den Ball (Akk)
Dative pronouns come before accusative pronouns.
Ich gebe ihm es.
I give it to him.
ihm (Dat) - es (Akk)
If there is a mix of nouns and pronouns, the pronoun always comes first.
Ich gebe dir das Buch.
I give you the book.
dir (Dat) - das Buch (Akk)
Ich gebe es meinem Vater.
I give it to my father.
es (Akk) - meinem Vater (Dat)
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