Why does the noun Karte have the article die?

About 90% of nouns ending in -e are feminine.

Examples

die Lampe (lamp), die Schule (school), die Tasche (bag), die Klasse (class), die Straße (street), die Sonne (sun), die Blume (flower)

Exceptions

der Junge (boy), der Löwe (lion), der Affe (monkey), der Name (name), der Käse (cheese), das Ende (end), das Auge (eye)

Declension table for German noun Karte

How it changes across the four cases.

CaseDefiniteIndefiniteNegative
Nominativdie Karteeine Kartekeine Karte
Akkusativdie Karteeine Kartekeine Karte
Dativder Karteeiner Kartekeiner Karte
Genitivder Karteeiner Kartekeiner Karte

Examples in context

Real sentences using Karte in different cases.

CaseDefiniteIndefiniteNegative
Nominativ
Die alte Karte liegt auf dem Tisch.The old card is on the table.
Hier ist eine neue Karte.Here is a new card.
Keine einzelne Karte ist gültig.No single card is valid.
Akkusativ
Ich sehe die richtige Karte.I see the right card.
Ich brauche eine neue Karte.I need a new card.
Er hat keine gültige Karte.He has no valid card.
Dativ
Ich spiele mit der guten Karte.I am playing with the good card.
Er hilft mir mit einer alten Karte.He helps me with an old card.
Ich gewinne mit keiner schlechten Karte.I win with no bad card.
Genitiv
Die Farbe der neuen Karte ist rot.The color of the new card is red.
Das ist das Design einer besonderen Karte.That is the design of a special card.
Der Wert keiner einzelnen Karte ist null.The value of no single card is zero.

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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 Karte?

It is die Karte. In German, every noun has a grammatical gender, and Karte 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 Karte?

The German noun Karte is categorized as Beginner (A1) vocabulary. It is considered an essential word for learners at this level.

What is the plural of die Karte?

The plural form of die Karte is die Karten. In German, regardless of the singular gender, all plural nouns use the definite article “die.”

What does die Karte mean in English?

The German word die Karte translates to “card, ticket, menu” in English.

How do you decline die Karte?

Like all German nouns, Karte changes its article depending on the case. In the singular, the forms are:
  • Nominativ: die Karte
  • Akkusativ: die Karte
  • Dativ: der Karte
  • Genitiv: der Karte

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.