Singular
die
Frau
woman, wife, Mrs.
Plural: die Frauen
Why does the noun Frau have the article die?
Nouns referring to female persons are feminine.
Examples
die Frau (woman), die Mutter (mother), die Schwester (sister), die Tochter (daughter), die Tante (aunt), die Nichte (niece), die Großmutter (grandmother)
Exceptions
das Mädchen (girl), das Fräulein (Miss) - due to diminutive -chen/-lein
Declension table for German noun Frau
How it changes across the four cases.
| Case | Definite | Indefinite | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nominativ | die Frau | eine Frau | keine Frau |
| Akkusativ | die Frau | eine Frau | keine Frau |
| Dativ | der Frau | einer Frau | keiner Frau |
| Genitiv | der Frau | einer Frau | keiner Frau |
| Nominativ | die Frauen | Frauen | keine Frauen |
| Akkusativ | die Frauen | Frauen | keine Frauen |
| Dativ | den Frauen | Frauen | keinen Frauen |
| Genitiv | der Frauen | Frauen | keiner Frauen |
Examples in context
Real sentences using Frau in different cases.
| Case | Definite | Indefinite | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nominativ | Die junge Frau arbeitet hier.The young woman works here. | Das ist eine nette Frau.That is a nice woman. | Das ist keine alte Frau.That is not an old woman. |
| Akkusativ | Ich kenne die junge Frau.I know the young woman. | Er sucht eine gute Frau.He is looking for a good woman. | Ich sehe keine alte Frau.I see no old woman. |
| Dativ | Ich helfe der alten Frau.I help the old woman. | Er gibt einer jungen Frau ein Buch.He gives a book to a young woman. | Ich antworte keiner bösen Frau.I answer no mean woman. |
| Genitiv | Das Auto der reichen Frau ist rot.The car of the rich woman is red. | Die Stimme einer jungen Frau ist schön.The voice of a young woman is beautiful. | Das ist das Kind keiner fremden Frau.That is the child of no foreign woman. |
| Nominativ | Die jungen Frauen singen schön.The young women sing beautifully. | Nette Frauen kommen heute.Nice women are coming today. | Keine fremden Frauen sind hier.No foreign women are here. |
| Akkusativ | Wir begrüßen die neuen Frauen.We welcome the new women. | Er trifft nette Frauen.He meets nice women. | Wir brauchen keine fremden Frauen.We need no foreign women. |
| Dativ | Er spricht mit den netten Frauen.He speaks with the nice women. | Wir danken vielen Frauen.We thank many women. | Ich folge keinen fremden Frauen.I follow no foreign women. |
| Genitiv | Die Meinung der klugen Frauen ist wichtig.The opinion of the smart women is important. | Die Hilfe netter Frauen war gut.The help of nice women was good. | Das sind die Taschen keiner fremden Frauen.Those are the bags of no foreign women. |
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Frequently asked questions
Everything you might wonder about der, die, das — and the Der Artikel app.
Is it der, die, or das Frau?
It is die Frau. In German, every noun has a grammatical gender, and Frau is feminine. You should always learn the article together with the noun to ensure your German grammar is correct.
What CEFR level is the word Frau?
The German noun Frau is categorized as Beginner (A1) vocabulary. It is considered an essential word for learners at this level.
What is the plural of die Frau?
The plural form of die Frau is die Frauen. In German, regardless of the singular gender, all plural nouns use the definite article “die.”
What does die Frau mean in English?
The German word die Frau translates to “woman, wife, Mrs.” in English.
How do you decline die Frau?
Like all German nouns, Frau changes its article depending on the case. In the singular, the forms are:
- Nominativ: die Frau
- Akkusativ: die Frau
- Dativ: der Frau
- Genitiv: der Frau
These changes are necessary because German uses cases to indicate the noun’s role in a sentence (such as the subject or object). Knowing these forms allows you to build grammatically correct sentences.
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