The gender rules
A German noun's ending or meaning often predicts its gender. The rules below cover 40% of the 2,400 words in the Genau course - a percentage measured on real data, not quoted from folklore. Every rule has its own page with the examples and exceptions that matter.
-e ending → die · 89%
329 words in the course · 39 exceptions
-ung → die · 10.6%
254 words in the course · 3 exceptions
-ion → die · 2.2% (exception: das Stadion)
53 words in the course · 1 exceptions
-in (feminine professions) → die · 1.4%
34 words in the course · 13 exceptions
-ie → die · 1.1% of nouns
27 words in the course · 1 exceptions
-schaft → die · no exceptions (1.1%)
26 words in the course · no exceptions
-heit → die · 0.8%
20 words in the course · no exceptions
-keit → die · 0.8%
18 words in the course · no exceptions
-ur → die · 0.8% (exceptions: Abitur, Merkur, Flur)
18 words in the course · 3 exceptions
-tät → die · no exceptions (0.6%)
14 words in the course · no exceptions
-ik → die · 0.5% (exception: der Streik)
13 words in the course · 1 exceptions
-enz → die · 0.5%, no exceptions
11 words in the course · no exceptions
Words for women (and “Person”) are always die.
8 words in the course · no exceptions
-ei → die · 0.3% of nouns
6 words in the course · 1 exceptions
Days, months, and seasons are always der.
26 words in the course · no exceptions
-ant/-ent → der · 0.9%, but many -ment exceptions
21 words in the course · 13 exceptions
-or → der · 0.7% (exception: das Tor)
16 words in the course · 2 exceptions
Weather & directions → der, but Wetter/Gewitter are das.
14 words in the course · 2 exceptions
-ich/-ig → der · 0.5% (exception: das Reich)
12 words in the course · 2 exceptions
-ist → der · 0.2% (exception: die Frist)
4 words in the course · 1 exceptions
-ismus → der · 0.1%, no exceptions
3 words in the course · no exceptions
-ling → der · rare, just one example (Frühling)
1 words in the course · no exceptions
Alcoholic drinks tend to be der, but Bier is das.
1 words in the course · 1 exceptions
Vehicles like ICE are der (a very rare rule).
1 words in the course · no exceptions
Ge- → das · only 64%, watch for exceptions
54 words in the course · 30 exceptions
Any infinitive used as a noun is das · 100%.
28 words in the course · no exceptions
-um → das · 1.1% (but Raum, Baum, Traum are der!)
26 words in the course · 9 exceptions
-o → das, but a weak pattern with exceptions (0.9%)
22 words in the course · 5 exceptions
-nis → das · 0.5% (but Kenntnis, Erkenntnis are die)
11 words in the course · 2 exceptions
Colors & languages → das · 89%
8 words in the course · 1 exceptions
-ma → das · 0.3% (but Mama, Oma, Firma are die!)
6 words in the course · 3 exceptions
-chen → das, always neuter, no exceptions.
3 words in the course · no exceptions
-lein → das, always neuter (a rarer cousin of -chen).
rare in the core vocabulary
-ment → das (rare pattern, no examples in our list)
rare in the core vocabulary
-tum → das (rare pattern, no examples in our list)
rare in the core vocabulary