die Philosophie
philosophy
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? | die Philosophie | die Philosophien |
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall) | Wen oder was? | die Philosophie | die Philosophien |
Dative Dativ (Wemfall) | Wem? | der Philosophie | den Philosophien |
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall) | Wessen? | der Philosophie | der Philosophien |
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? | eine Philosophie | Philosophien |
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall) | Wen oder was? | eine Philosophie | Philosophien |
Dative Dativ (Wemfall) | Wem? | einer Philosophie | Philosophien |
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall) | Wessen? | einer Philosophie | Philosophien |
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? | keine Philosophie | keine Philosophien |
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall) | Wen oder was? | keine Philosophie | keine Philosophien |
Dative Dativ (Wemfall) | Wem? | keiner Philosophie | keinen Philosophien |
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall) | Wessen? | keiner Philosophie | keiner Philosophien |
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? | meine Philosophie | meine Philosophien |
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall) | Wen oder was? | meine Philosophie | meine Philosophien |
Dative Dativ (Wemfall) | Wem? | meiner Philosophie | meinen Philosophien |
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall) | Wessen? | meiner Philosophie | meiner Philosophien |
Why These Endings Work
All feminine (die) nouns stay completely unchanged in the singular across Nominative, Accusative, Dative, and Genitive.
- Feminine nouns never change their own ending in the singular across all four cases.
- Plural "Philosophien" already ends in -n or -s, so Dative plural stays Philosophien.
Example Sentences in Context
Kant, Hegel und Nietzsche prägten die deutsche Philosophie.
Kant, Hegel and Nietzsche shaped German philosophy.
Die großen Fragen der Philosophie sind bis heute offen.
The big questions of philosophy remain open to this day.
Interactive Tools & Related Guides
More Nouns in Culture & Ideas
FAQs: die Philosophie
Is "Philosophie" der, die, or das in German?
"Philosophie" takes the feminine definite article "die" (die Philosophie). Gender cue: Suffix -ie -> nearly always feminine (die).
What is the plural and Dative plural of "die Philosophie"?
The Nominative plural of die Philosophie is "die Philosophien" (pattern: -n). In the Dative plural it becomes "den Philosophien".
How does "die Philosophie" change in the Genitive, Accusative, and Dative?
As a feminine noun, "Philosophie" keeps the exact same stem in all four singular cases; only the article changes (die Philosophie / die Philosophie / der Philosophie / der Philosophie).