Pronouns replace noun phrases, but their forms still reflect their role in a sentence. Learn the subject form together with useful object forms.
The idea
Ich, du and wir are subject forms. After sehen, use an accusative form such as mich or dich. After helfen, use a dative form such as mir or dir. Sie can mean she, they or formal you; verb form, capitalization and context help you distinguish them. The table shows the central forms, including formal Sie.
| Nominativ | Akkusativ | Dativ |
|---|---|---|
| ich | mich | mir |
| du | dich | dir |
| er | ihn | ihm |
| sie | sie | ihr |
| es | es | ihm |
| wir | uns | uns |
| ihr | euch | euch |
| sie / Sie | sie / Sie | ihnen / Ihnen |
Examples
- Ich komme aus Bonn.
- Du wohnst in Köln.
- Er lernt Deutsch.
- Wir sehen sie heute.
- Kannst du mir helfen?
- Ich rufe dich morgen an.
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Watch out
Do not use ich everywhere you would say “me” or “I” in English. The German verb pattern decides whether you need ich, mich or mir.
Try it yourself
Lea und ich lernen Deutsch. ___ lernen zusammen.
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Wir
Lea und ich means we, so the subject pronoun is wir.
Ich sehe ___. (du)
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dich
Sehen requires accusative. The accusative form of du is dich.
Kannst du ___ helfen? (ich)
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mir
Helfen requires dative. The dative form of ich is mir.
Practice round
Answer three questions, then rebuild three German sentences. We keep your score.
Lea und ich lernen Deutsch. ___ lernen zusammen.
Ich sehe ___. (du)
Kannst du ___ helfen? (ich)
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Keep your progress
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Introduce yourself with ich. Ask a friend for help using mir. Then say that you will call the friend, using dich.