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Adjectives and Adverbs in German – A1 Grammar Made Simple

What are adjectives and adverbs?

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Adjectives describe nouns: things, people, places. They tell you what kind, how big, how old, what colour, etc.

Examples:

  • ein schönes Haus (a beautiful house)

  • eine interessante Sprache (an interesting language)

  • ein kleiner Hund (a small dog)

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Adverbs describe how, when, or where something happens. In German, many adverbs look exactly like adjectives.

Examples:

  • Sie spricht laut. (She speaks loudly.)

  • Ich lerne schnell. (I learn fast.)

  • Wir fahren morgen. (We are leaving tomorrow.)

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The key difference:

  • Adjectives describe things (nouns): eine schöne Stadt, ein kleiner Tisch, das neue Auto

  • Adverbs describe actions (verbs): schnell laufen, gut schlafen, laut sprechen

 

Tip: Ask yourself – does it describe a thing (adjective) or an action (adverb)? That helps you decide which one it is.

Using adjectives with nouns – with articles

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When you use an adjective before a noun in German, you must change its ending. This is called adjective declension, and it depends on:

  • the gender of the noun (der/die/das)

  • the case (Nominative, Accusative, Dative, Genitive)

  • whether the article is definite (der, die, das), indefinite (ein, eine), or missing

 

At A1 level, you mostly need nominative and accusative with definite and indefinite articles.

Examples:

  • der große Tisch (the big table – masculine, nom.)

  • einen schönen Garten (a beautiful garden – masculine, acc.)

  • das neue Auto (the new car – neuter, nom./acc.)

  • eine nette Lehrerin (a nice teacher – fem., nom.)

 

More A1-friendly examples:

  • Ich habe einen kleinen Hund. (I have a small dog.)

  • Das ist ein interessanter Film. (That’s an interesting film.)

  • Sie liest eine spannende Geschichte. (She reads an exciting story.)

 

Tip: Adjective endings can feel tricky. Try to memorise whole phrases, not just grammar rules. That builds fluency faster.

Using adjectives after sein, werden, bleiben

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When an adjective comes after a verb like sein (to be), werden (to become), or bleiben (to remain), it doesn’t change its form. It stays in the basic form.

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This is much easier than adjectives before a noun – no declension needed!

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Examples:

  • Das Wetter ist schön. (The weather is nice.)

  • Ich bin müde. (I am tired.)

  • Er bleibt ruhig. (He stays calm.)

  • Sie wird berühmt. (She is becoming famous.)

  • Du bist nett. (You are kind.)

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Tip: These are called predicative adjectives – and they never change!

Common A1 adjectives

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Here are some useful adjectives you will see and use a lot. Try using each one in a sentence with a noun:

  • klein (small)

  • groß (big)

  • alt (old)

  • jung (young)

  • schön (beautiful)

  • teuer (expensive)

  • billig (cheap)

  • nett (nice)

  • freundlich (friendly)

  • schwer (difficult/heavy)

  • einfach (easy)

  • ruhig (calm)

  • laut (loud)

  • schnell (fast)

  • langsam (slow)

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Tip: Make flashcards with the adjective and an example sentence. Use both before and after a noun:

  • der kleine Hund / Der Hund ist klein.

  • ein freundlicher Lehrer / Der Lehrer ist freundlich.

Adverbs – when, how, where

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You don’t need to change adverbs. They’re very learner-friendly!

 

Some common types:

Time (when?)

  • heute (today)

  • morgen (tomorrow)

  • jetzt (now)

  • bald (soon)

  • immer (always)

 

Manner (how?)

  • gern (with pleasure)

  • schnell (fast)

  • langsam (slowly)

  • leise (quietly)

  • deutlich (clearly)

 

Place (where?)

  • hier (here)

  • dort (there)

  • oben (above)

  • unten (below)

  • draußen (outside)

 

Examples:

  • Ich komme morgen.

  • Er spricht sehr langsam.

  • Sie bleibt hier.

  • Wir treffen uns draußen.

 

Tip: If it doesn’t describe a noun, it’s likely an adverb – and you don’t need to worry about endings.

Summary – what to remember

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  • Adjectives describe nouns, adverbs describe actions.

  • Adjectives change endings before nouns but not after verbs like sein/werden.

  • Adverbs never change their form.

  • Learn the most useful ones through short phrases.

  • Ask yourself what the word is describing – that helps you choose the right form.

Adjectives & Adverbs

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