die · Feminine (Femininum)B1Feminine DeclensionStudy & Grammar

die Regel

rule

Nominative Sg.die Regel

Genitive Sg.der Regel

Nominative Plural

die Regeln

Dative Pluralden Regeln

Gender / Plural CueLexical gender — memorize together with its article

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?	die Regel	die Regeln
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall)	Wen oder was?	die Regel	die Regeln
Dative Dativ (Wemfall)	Wem?	der Regel	den Regeln
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall)	Wessen?	der Regel	der Regeln

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?	eine Regel	Regeln
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall)	Wen oder was?	eine Regel	Regeln
Dative Dativ (Wemfall)	Wem?	einer Regel	Regeln
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall)	Wessen?	einer Regel	Regeln

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?	keine Regel	keine Regeln
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall)	Wen oder was?	keine Regel	keine Regeln
Dative Dativ (Wemfall)	Wem?	keiner Regel	keinen Regeln
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall)	Wessen?	keiner Regel	keiner Regeln

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?	meine Regel	meine Regeln
Accusative Akkusativ (Wenfall)	Wen oder was?	meine Regel	meine Regeln
Dative Dativ (Wemfall)	Wem?	meiner Regel	meinen Regeln
Genitive Genitiv (Wesfall)	Wessen?	meiner Regel	meiner Regeln

Why These Endings Work

All feminine (die) nouns stay completely unchanged in the singular across Nominative, Accusative, Dative, and Genitive.

Feminine nouns never change their own ending in the singular across all four cases.
Plural "Regeln" already ends in -n or -s, so Dative plural stays Regeln.

Pattern summary: Only the article changes in singular (die / die / der / der); plural takes -n in Dative unless ending in -n or -s.

Example Sentences in Context

Nominative

Diese Regel gilt ausnahmslos.

This rule applies without exception.

Dative

Nach dieser Regel steht das Verb an zweiter Stelle.

According to this rule, the verb goes in second position.

Interactive Tools & Related Guides

Check "Regel" 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 Noun Plurals & Dative -nPlural patterns and the Dative plural -n rule Dative Case GuideIndirect objects, prepositions, and der + feminine nouns

FAQs: die Regel

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

"Regel" takes the feminine definite article "die" (die Regel). Gender cue: Lexical gender — memorize together with its article.

What is the plural and Dative plural of "die Regel"?

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

How does "die Regel" change in the Genitive, Accusative, and Dative?

As a feminine noun, "Regel" keeps the exact same stem in all four singular cases; only the article changes (die Regel / die Regel / der Regel / der Regel).