Nuts & Bolts of German: Accusative case: Direct object: What's all this about? (II)

direct link to What's all this about? (III)

In the previous activity you learnt the difference between a direct object and a subject and you also found out that, in German, the definite article is affected by this. Study the following sentences and figure out in which way the definite article is affected. Complete the rule underneath. Then press [Check] to see if you were correct. Use the [Hint] button to get a free letter if you need help.

Was kostet

die Kerrygold Butter

in Deutschland?
 

subject

  

 

Ich wei nicht,  aber meine Mutter kauft

die  Butter

immer.
 

direct object

  
noun, its gender and

its number

 noun plays the role

of the subject

 noun plays the role of

the direct object

Rucksack

(masculine singular)

 Der Rucksack kostet 50 Euro. Sie kauft den Rucksack.
Jacke

(feminine singular)

 Die Jacke kostet 120 Euro. Sie kauft die Jacke.
Buch

(neuter singular)

 Das Buch kostet 10 Euro. Sie kauft das Buch.
Orangen (fem. plural), Äpfel (masc. plural),

Steaks (neut. plural) 

 Die Orangen, die Äpfel und die Steaks kosten 20 Euro. Sie kauft die Orangen, die Äpfel

und die Steaks.


In German, the equivalent of the definite article "the" changes from "der" to "" if a masculine singular noun changes its role from subject to direct object.

There is no difference in the definite article when it refers to or neuter nouns in the singular or nouns in the , no matter what their gender is in the singular.
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Tip: If you don't belong to the lucky few who possess a photographic memory, write down what you learnt while doing this exercise.

     

photo: © Dagmar Fischer