der · Masculine (Maskulinum)B1N-Declension / WeakPeople & Family

der Mensch

human being / person

Nominative Sg.der Mensch

Genitive Sg.des Menschen

Nominative Plural

die Menschen

Dative Pluralden Menschen

Gender / Plural CueMonosyllabic weak noun (N-Deklination): den/dem/des Menschen

Full 4-Case Declension Table

Switch determiner types to inspect how articles and noun endings change together.

Definite (der / die / das): Used for specific, already known, or general-category nouns.

Case (Fall)	Question	Singular	Plural
Nominative Nominativ (Werfall)	Wer oder was?	der Mensch	die Menschen
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall)	Wen oder was?	den Menschen	die Menschen
Dative Dativ (Wemfall)	Wem?	dem Menschen	den Menschen
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall)	Wessen?	des Menschen	der Menschen

Indefinite (ein / eine): Used when introducing a countable singular noun; has no plural article in German.

Case (Fall)	Question	Singular	Plural
Nominative Nominativ (Werfall)	Wer oder was?	ein Mensch	Menschen
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall)	Wen oder was?	einen Menschen	Menschen
Dative Dativ (Wemfall)	Wem?	einem Menschen	Menschen
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall)	Wessen?	eines Menschen	Menschen

Negative (kein / keine): Negates nouns with or without an indefinite article; follows ein-words in singular and die in plural.

Case (Fall)	Question	Singular	Plural
Nominative Nominativ (Werfall)	Wer oder was?	kein Mensch	keine Menschen
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall)	Wen oder was?	keinen Menschen	keine Menschen
Dative Dativ (Wemfall)	Wem?	keinem Menschen	keinen Menschen
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall)	Wessen?	keines Menschen	keiner Menschen

Possessive (mein / dein / …): Uses ein-word endings in singular and definite-like endings in plural (mein/dein/sein/ihr/unser/euer/Ihr).

Case (Fall)	Question	Singular	Plural
Nominative Nominativ (Werfall)	Wer oder was?	mein Mensch	meine Menschen
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall)	Wen oder was?	meinen Menschen	meine Menschen
Dative Dativ (Wemfall)	Wem?	meinem Menschen	meinen Menschen
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall)	Wessen?	meines Menschen	meiner Menschen

Why These Endings Work

Animate and classical masculine nouns ending in -e, -ent, -ant, -ist, -oge, plus key nouns like Herr and Mensch.

N-Declension (weak masculine): takes -(e)n in Accusative, Dative, and Genitive singular as well as plural.
Plural "Menschen" already ends in -n or -s, so Dative plural stays Menschen.

Pattern summary: Adds -n or -en in Accusative, Dative, and Genitive Singular (and Plural); Herr takes -n in Sg and -en in Pl.

Example Sentences in Context

Nominative

Jeder Mensch macht beim Lernen einmal Fehler.

Every human being makes mistakes while learning.

Dative

Dieser Kurs hilft vielen Menschen im Alltag.

This course helps many people in everyday life.

Genitive

Die Bedürfnisse des Menschen stehen im Mittelpunkt.

Human needs are at the center.

Interactive Tools & Related Guides

Check "Mensch" in Der/Die/Das Checker Analyze in Compound Deconstructor Inspect Example in Sentence Analyzer

German Gender & ArticlesPredict der, die, das with high-frequency endings The Four German CasesNominative, Accusative, Dative, and Genitive roles N-Declension (Weak Nouns)Why "Mensch" adds -(e)n across singular cases Genitive Case GuideHow "des Menschen" expresses possession

FAQs: der Mensch

Is "Mensch" der, die, or das in German?

"Mensch" takes the masculine definite article "der" (der Mensch). Gender cue: Monosyllabic weak noun (N-Deklination): den/dem/des Menschen.

What is the plural and Dative plural of "der Mensch"?

The Nominative plural of der Mensch is "die Menschen" (pattern: -en). In the Dative plural it becomes "den Menschen".

How does "der Mensch" change in the Genitive, Accusative, and Dative?

"Mensch" follows N-Deklination (weak masculine): Nominative "der Mensch", while Accusative "den Menschen", Dative "dem Menschen", and Genitive "des Menschen" all use "Menschen".