der · Masculine (Maskulinum)A2N-Declension / WeakProfessions & Roles

der Kollege

colleague (male)

Nominative Sg.der Kollege

Genitive Sg.des Kollegen

Nominative Plural

die Kollegen

Dative Pluralden Kollegen

Gender / Plural CueMale person in -e -> masculine weak noun (N-Deklination: den/dem/des Kollegen)

Full 4-Case Declension Table

Switch determiner types to inspect how articles and noun endings change together.

Definite (der / die / das): Used for specific, already known, or general-category nouns.

Case (Fall)	Question	Singular	Plural
Nominative Nominativ (Werfall)	Wer oder was?	der Kollege	die Kollegen
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall)	Wen oder was?	den Kollegen	die Kollegen
Dative Dativ (Wemfall)	Wem?	dem Kollegen	den Kollegen
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall)	Wessen?	des Kollegen	der Kollegen

Indefinite (ein / eine): Used when introducing a countable singular noun; has no plural article in German.

Case (Fall)	Question	Singular	Plural
Nominative Nominativ (Werfall)	Wer oder was?	ein Kollege	Kollegen
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall)	Wen oder was?	einen Kollegen	Kollegen
Dative Dativ (Wemfall)	Wem?	einem Kollegen	Kollegen
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall)	Wessen?	eines Kollegen	Kollegen

Negative (kein / keine): Negates nouns with or without an indefinite article; follows ein-words in singular and die in plural.

Case (Fall)	Question	Singular	Plural
Nominative Nominativ (Werfall)	Wer oder was?	kein Kollege	keine Kollegen
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall)	Wen oder was?	keinen Kollegen	keine Kollegen
Dative Dativ (Wemfall)	Wem?	keinem Kollegen	keinen Kollegen
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall)	Wessen?	keines Kollegen	keiner Kollegen

Possessive (mein / dein / …): Uses ein-word endings in singular and definite-like endings in plural (mein/dein/sein/ihr/unser/euer/Ihr).

Case (Fall)	Question	Singular	Plural
Nominative Nominativ (Werfall)	Wer oder was?	mein Kollege	meine Kollegen
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall)	Wen oder was?	meinen Kollegen	meine Kollegen
Dative Dativ (Wemfall)	Wem?	meinem Kollegen	meinen Kollegen
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall)	Wessen?	meines Kollegen	meiner Kollegen

Why These Endings Work

Animate and classical masculine nouns ending in -e, -ent, -ant, -ist, -oge, plus key nouns like Herr and Mensch.

N-Declension (weak masculine): takes -(e)n in Accusative, Dative, and Genitive singular as well as plural.
Plural "Kollegen" already ends in -n or -s, so Dative plural stays Kollegen.

Pattern summary: Adds -n or -en in Accusative, Dative, and Genitive Singular (and Plural); Herr takes -n in Sg and -en in Pl.

Example Sentences in Context

Nominative

Mein Kollege hilft mir bei der Präsentation.

My colleague helps me with the presentation.

Accusative

Ich rufe den Kollegen heute Nachmittag noch an.

I will call my colleague later this afternoon.

Genitive

Auf dem Schreibtisch des Kollegen steht eine Tasse Kaffee.

On the colleague’s desk sits a cup of coffee.

Interactive Tools & Related Guides

Check "Kollege" in Der/Die/Das Checker Analyze in Compound Deconstructor Inspect Example in Sentence Analyzer

German Gender & ArticlesPredict der, die, das with high-frequency endings The Four German CasesNominative, Accusative, Dative, and Genitive roles N-Declension (Weak Nouns)Why "Kollege" adds -(e)n across singular cases Genitive Case GuideHow "des Kollegen" expresses possession

FAQs: der Kollege

Is "Kollege" der, die, or das in German?

"Kollege" takes the masculine definite article "der" (der Kollege). Gender cue: Male person in -e -> masculine weak noun (N-Deklination: den/dem/des Kollegen).

What is the plural and Dative plural of "der Kollege"?

The Nominative plural of der Kollege is "die Kollegen" (pattern: -n). In the Dative plural it becomes "den Kollegen".

How does "der Kollege" change in the Genitive, Accusative, and Dative?

"Kollege" follows N-Deklination (weak masculine): Nominative "der Kollege", while Accusative "den Kollegen", Dative "dem Kollegen", and Genitive "des Kollegen" all use "Kollegen".