In German we use accusative pronouns in all the same places where you would use accusative nouns: mostly for the direct object of the sentence and to follow certain prepositionsNo definition set for prepositionsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum..
Accusative pronouns are often called direct object pronouns because they are most classically used to replace the direct objectNo definition set for direct objectLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. of a sentence. Notice that, in the example below, the direct object pronoun has a different form from the subject pronoun:
Ich mag meinen Hund sehr. Ich mag ihn sehr, denn er ist ein guter Junge.
I like my dog a lot. I like him a lot because he is a good boy.
However, accusative pronouns are not only used for the direct object of the sentence. In this post, we’ll introduce you to the accusative forms of the German personal pronouns, discuss when you should use them, and discuss where to put them in German sentences. Ready to have a look? Let’s dive in!
The accusative personal pronouns in German are mich, dich, ihn, sie, es, uns, euch, sie, and Sie. These are sometimes also called “direct object pronouns.”
Nominative Pronouns (subject pronouns) | Accusative Pronouns (direct object pronouns) |
|---|---|
ich(I) | mich(me) |
du(you) | dich(you) |
er(he)sie(she)es(it) | ihn(him)sie(her)es(it) |
wir(we) | uns(us) |
ihr(you (all)) | euch(you (all)) |
sie(they) | sie(them) |
Sie(you (formal)) | Sie(you (formal)) |
Here are some good ways to memorize the accusative pronouns:
The accusative pronouns mich and dich rhyme with the nominative pronoun ich.
The singular “you” pronoun dich starts with “d” just like its nominative equivalent, du.
Notice in the table above that the accusative pronouns ihn, sie, es are the same as the nominative pronouns er, sie, es, except for the masculine pronoun ihn.
The RESE-NESE-MRMN-SRSR mnemonic for the ending of the definite articles can be used to remember the endings of these pronouns: the accusative mnemonic is NESE which corresponds to the pronouns: ihn, sie, es, sie.
Uns sounds a lot like its English equivalent “us.”
There are three ways to say “you” in German:
dich | use for one person, in informal situations |
euch | use for more than one person, in informal situations |
Sie | use for one or more people in formal situations |
Remember the differences between all the forms of sie/Sie:
sie (singular) | “she” (the corresponding verb ending is -t) |
sie (plural) | “they” (the corresponding verb ending is -en) |
Sie (formal “you”) | formal Sie is always capitalized |
In German, we use accusative pronouns in two main instances:
To replace a noun that is the direct object of the sentence, in other words, the the noun directly affected by the action:
Ich sehe meinen Hund Waldi. → Ich sehe ihn.
I see my dog Waldi. → I see him.
To replace nouns that are introduced by certain prepositionsNo definition set for prepositionsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum..
We always use these pronouns after the accusative prepositions, such as durch or für.
Die Wurst ist für meinen Hund Waldi. → Die Wurst ist für ihn.
The sausage is for my dog Waldi. → The sausage is for him.
We can use these pronouns after two-case prepositions (e.g. in, an, or auf) when they introduce nouns for people or pets (animals we treat like people).
Waldi springt auf die Katze. → Waldi springt sich auf sie.
Waldi is jumping on the cat. → Waldi is jumping on her.
We discussed their forms, but how do you pick the right accusative pronoun? Let’s look at some examples:
You’re talking about a bone (der Knochen) and you want to say that your dog likes it. We start with:
Mein Hund mag den Knochen.
My dog likes the bone.
Now we replace the der Knochen with a pronoun. Which accusative pronoun to choose?
Well, der Knochen(the bone) is a masculine noun in German because it has a der article, and so it needs to be replaced with a masculine singular accusative pronoun: ihn.
Mein Hund mag ihn.
My dog likes it.
lit. My dog likes him.
You may have expected to use es(it) to represent der Knochen(the bone) in the example above, since a bone is a thing. In German, however, the pronoun choice always follows the noun’s grammatical gender, and der Knochen is a masculine noun so we use ihn(him).
You want to tell your neighbors, Anna and Lena, that you saw them at the dog park yesterday. We start with:
Ich habe _______ gestern im Hundepark gesehen.
I saw _______ at the dog park yesterday.
You want to find the right pronoun representing “you” on the table. Which one to pick? Well, you are on a first name basis with Anna and Lena, so you need an accusative pronoun that you can use to address more than one person informally: euch.
Ich habe euch gestern im Hundepark gesehen.
I saw you (all) at the dog park yesterday.
Your roommate is feeding your dog Stella table scraps and you want to say “No, I have dog food for her.” We start with…
Nein, ich habe Hundefutter für _______.
No, I have dog food for _______.
Für is an accusative preposition, so it needs to be followed by an accusative pronoun. Stella is a pet and part of the family, so you can use the German equivalent of the pronoun “her”: sie.
Nein, ich habe Hundefutter für sie.
No, I have dog food for her.
In German, accusative pronouns most often come after the verb, where direct objects usually go in standard German word order.
However, when your sentence has both a direct objectNo definition set for direct objectLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. and an indirect object (recipient or beneficiary, there’s a special little rule to learn. Though usually the direct object in German comes after the indirect object, if the direct object is a pronoun, it’ll come before the indirect object instead.
Ich gebe dem Hund eine Wurst.
I give the dog a sausage.
BUT:
Ich gebe sie dem Hund.
I give it to the dog.
What if both nouns are pronouns? No problem, we use the second order, with the accusative pronoun first:
Ich gebe sie ihm.
I give it to him.
What else is there to know about accusative pronouns? Accusative pronouns are part of some useful idiomatic phrases.
Check these out if you want to greet someone and introduce yourself:
Expression | Literal |
|---|---|
Grüß dich! Hello! | (I) greet you! |
Freut mich. Pleased to meet you. | (It) makes me happy. |
Something to say when it is cold outside:
Expression | Literal |
|---|---|
Mich fröstelt. I am shivering. | (It) is making me chilly. |
Say this if you need a little peace and quiet and people have been ignoring your more gentle requests:
Expression | Literal |
|---|---|
Lasst mich in Ruhe! Leave me alone! | — |
In this article we discussed:
The accusative pronouns in German are mich, dich, ihn, sie, es, uns, euch, sie, and Sie.
Accusative pronouns are used to replace nouns that are:
direct objects
after accusative prepositions
Accusative pronouns always stand before an indirect object, not after.
Now, you’re ready to practice! Have a look at our German accusative pronoun activities, or review what you’ve learned by checking out this sheet with all the German personal pronouns!
