German Gender Hints

Front 1

Day(s)- month(s)- season(s)
Tag(e)- Monat(e)- Jareszeit(en)

Back 1

Always masculine

Front 2

Points of the compass, map locations and winds: Nordwest(en) (northwest), Süd(en) (south)

Back 2

Always masculine

Front 3

Precipitation: Regen, Schnee, Nebel (rain, snow, fog/mist)

Back 3

Always masculine

Front 4

Names of cars and trains: der VW, der ICE, der Mercedes. (But motorbikes and aircraft are feminine.)

Back 4

Always masculine

Front 5

•Words ending in -ismus: Journalismus, Kommunismus, Synchronismus (equal -ism words in English)

Back 5

Always masculine

Front 6

Words ending in -ner: Rentner, Schaffner, Zentner, Zöllner (pensioner, [train] conductor, hundred-weight, customs collector). The feminine form adds -in (die Rentnerin)

Back 6

always masculine

Front 7

Agents (people who do something), most occupations and nationalities: der Architekt, der Arzt, der Deutsche, der Fahrer, der Verkäufer, der Student, der Täter (architect, physician, German [person], driver, salesman, student, perpetrator).

Back 7

usually masculine.
The feminine form of these terms almost always ends in -in (die Architektin, die Ärztin, die Fahrerin, die Verkäuferin, die Studentin, Täterin, but die Deutsche).

Front 8

Nouns ending in -er, when referring to people

Back 8

usually masculine.
But die Jungfer, die Mutter, die Schwester, die Tochter, das Fenster

Front 9

Names of alcoholic drinks: der Wein, der Wodka

Back 9

usually masculine. but das Bier

Front 10

Names of mountains and lakes: der Berg, der See

Back 10

usually masculine but die see is the see.

Front 11

Most nouns ending in -ich, -ling, -ist: Rettich, Sittich, Schädling, Frühling, Pazifist (radish, parakeet, pest/parasite, spring, pacifist)

Back 11

usually masculine

Front 12

Nouns ending in the following suffixes: -heit, -keit, -tät, -ung, -schaft - Examples: die Freiheit, Schnelligkeit, Universität, Zeitung, Freundschaft (freedom, quickness, university, newspaper, friendship). Note that these suffixes usually have a corresponding English suffix, such as -ness (-heit, -keit), -ty (-tät), -ship (-schaft)

Back 12

always feminine

Front 13

•Nouns ending in -ie: Drogerie, Geographie, Komödie, Industrie, Ironie (often equal to words ending in -y in English)

Back 13

always feminine

Front 14

Nouns ending in -ik: die Grammatik, Grafik, Klinik, Musik, Panik, Physik

Back 14

always feminine

Front 15

•Borrowed (foreign) nouns ending in: -ade, -age, -anz, -enz, -ette, -ine, -ion, -tur: Parade, Blamage (shame), Bilanz, Distanz, Frequenz, Serviette (napkin), Limonade, Nation

Back 15

always feminine

Front 16

Cardinal numbers: eine Eins, eine Drei (a one, a three)

Back 16

always feminine

Front 17

•Nouns ending in -in that pertain to female people, occupations, nationalities: Amerikanerin, Studentin (female American, student),

Back 17

usually feminine but der Harlekin and also many non-people words: das Benzin, der Urin (gasoline/petrol, urine).

Front 18

•Most nouns ending in -e: Ecke, Ente, Grenze, Pistole, Seuche (corner, duck, border, pistol, epidemic)

Back 18

usually feminine but der Deutsche, das Ensemble, der Friede, der Junge ([the] German, ensemble, peace, boy)

Front 19

Nouns ending in -ei: Partei, Schweinerei (party [political], dirty trick/mess

Back 19

usually feminine but das Ei, der Papagei (egg, parrot).

Front 20

Most types of flowers and trees: Birke, Chrysantheme, Eiche, Rose (birch, chrysanthemum, oak, rose

Back 20

usually feminine but der Ahorn, (maple), das Gänseblümchen (daisy), and the word for tree is der Baum

Front 21

Nouns ending in -chen or -lein: Fräulein, Häuschen, Kaninchen, Mädchen (unmarried woman, cottage, rabbit, girl/maiden)

Back 21

always neuter

Front 22

Infinitives used as nouns (gerunds): das Essen, das Schreiben (eating/food, writing)

Back 22

always neuter

Front 23

Almost all of the 112 known chemical elements (das Aluminium

Back 23

always neuter except for six that are masculine: der Kohlenstoff (carbon), der Sauerstoff (oxygen), der Stickstoff (nitrogen), der Wasserstoff (hydrogen), der Phosphor and der Schwefel (sulphur).

Front 24

Names of hotels, cafés and theaters

Back 24

always neuter

Front 25

Names of colors used as nouns das Blau, das Rot (blue, red)

Back 25

always neuter

Front 26

•Geographic place names (towns, countries, continents): das Berlin, Deutschland, Brasilien, Afrika (but learn non-das countries, such as: der Irak, der Jemen, die Schweiz, die Türkei, die USA [plur.])

Back 26

usually neuter

Front 27

Young animals and people: das Baby, das Küken (chick); but der Junge (boy).

Back 27

usually neuter

Front 28

Most metals: Aluminium, Blei, Kupfer, Messing, Zinn (aluminium, lead, copper, brass, tin/pewter; but die Bronze, der Stahl - bronze, steel)

Back 28

usually neuter

Front 29

Nouns ending in -o (often cognates from Latin): das Auto, Büro, Kasino, Konto (account), Radio, Veto, Video - Note: Exceptions: die Avocado, die Disko, der Euro

Back 29

usually neuter

Front 30

Most nouns starting with Ge-: Genick, Gerät, Geschirr, Geschlecht, Gesetz, Gespräch (back of the neck, device, dishes, sex/gender, law, conversation),

Back 30

usually neuter

Front 31

Most borrowed (foreign) nouns ending in -ment: Ressentiment, Supplement (but der Zement, der/das Moment [2 diff. meanings])

Back 31

usually neuter

Front 32

Most nouns ending in -nis: Versäumnis (neglect

Back 32

usually neuter

Front 33

Most nouns ending in -tum or -um: Christentum, Königtum (Christianity, kingship; but der Irrtum, der Reichtum - error, wealth)

Back 33

usually neuter

Front 34

all nouns become what gender in the plural?

Back 34

die