TOPIC · Nouns (Nomen)

Nominalization of verbs in German

A1A2B1

After this lesson you can nominalize German verbs with the correct article and use these nouns in typical sentence patterns.

In German you often use a noun to talk about actions instead of the verb form, for example „das Lernen“ instead of „lernen“. This change from verb to noun is called „Substantivierung“ or „Nominalisierung“.

Basic rule: verb → noun with „das“

The most common and easiest type: infinitive of the verb + article „das“.

The noun is written with a capital letter.
The noun is neuter: article „das“.

Infinitiv	Noun with article	Example	Meaning
lernen	das Lernen	Das Lernen macht Spaß. (Learning is fun.)	the process of learning
lesen	das Lesen	Das Lesen vor dem Schlafen beruhigt mich. (Reading before sleep calms me.)	the activity of reading
schwimmen	das Schwimmen	Das Schwimmen ist gesund. (Swimming is healthy.)	sport / activity
arbeiten	das Arbeiten	Das Arbeiten am Abend ist anstrengend. (Working in the evening is tiring.)	the activity of working

Typical patterns:

„Das + verb-noun + ist …“: Das Rauchen ist verboten. (Smoking is forbidden.)
„beim + verb-noun“: Beim Kochen höre ich Musik. (I listen to music while cooking.)

Typical structures in a sentence

Structure	Example	Meaning
with article	Das Lesen ist wichtig. (Reading is important.)	„Lesen“ as topic / activity
with preposition „bei“ (beim)	Beim Singen vergesse ich die Zeit. (I forget the time when singing.)	during the singing
with possessive pronoun	Dein Lachen macht mich glücklich. (Your laughter makes me happy.)	the „Lachen“ that belongs to „du“
with adjective	Schnelles Fahren ist gefährlich. (Fast driving is dangerous.)	the way of driving
with „durch“	Erfolg durch Fleiß. (Success through diligence.)	cause / means: because of diligence
with „ohne“	Scheitern ohne Planung. (Failure without planning.)	reason: because there is no planning

Note: After „durch“ and „ohne“ there is often no article: durch Fahren, ohne Lernen.

Fixed nouns derived from verbs

Many verbs have their own noun with a changed form and a fixed article. You learn these like vocabulary.

Masculine forms (mostly „der“)

Verb	Noun	Example	Meaning
laufen	der Lauf	Der Lauf war sehr anstrengend. (The run was very exhausting.)	a race / course
schlafen	der Schlaf	Der Schlaf ist wichtig. (Sleep is important.)	state of sleeping
schreien	der Schrei	Der Schrei war laut. (The scream was loud.)	single shout

Typical endings

Very common endings give you a strong hint about the grammatical gender:

Nouns with „-ung“ → mostly „die“
Nouns with „-nis“ → mostly „die“ (often plural „-nisse“)
Nouns with „-ion“ → always „die“
Nouns with „-er“ → mostly „der“

Verb	Noun	Example	Meaning
kündigen	die Kündigung	Die Kündigung kam per Post. (The termination came by post.)	official end of a contract
erlauben	die Erlaubnis	Ich habe die Erlaubnis bekommen. (I received the permission.)	official „yes“
informieren	die Information	Die Information war falsch. (The information was wrong.)	transmitted data
wandern	der Wanderer	Der Wanderer ist müde. (The hiker is tired.)	a person who is hiking

Use for A1–B1

A1: Remember „das + infinitive“ for general activities: das Essen, das Trinken, das Spielen.
A2: Use patterns with „beim“, „ohne“, „durch“: Beim Lernen, ohne Frühstück, durch Üben.
B1: Learn frequent nouns with „-ung“, „-nis“, „-ion“, „-er“ and their article.

summary: After this lesson you can turn German verbs into nouns with the correct article and use them correctly in simple sentences.