There are three words for 'it' in German - er/sie/es. Which one should I use?

That's right, German has three words for English 'it'! But don't worry, there's a rule which lets you pick the right one! German nouns have grammatical gender and can be masculine (der), feminine (die), or neuter (das). You use 'er' to refer to masculine nouns, 'sie' for feminine nouns', and 'es' for neuter nouns:
der Hund is groß -> er is großdie Blume ist schön -> sie ist schöndas Haus ist riesig -> es ist riesig

AB
Answered by Ashley B. German tutor

6029 Views

See similar German GCSE tutors

Related German GCSE answers

All answers ▸

When should I use the nominative case?


Which case should I use with which preposition?


How do I construct the perfect tense in German? I don't understand what an auxiliary verb is.


How do I remember what grammatical gender nouns have?


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2026 by IXL Learning