Abstract Nouns

Suffixes Used to Create Nouns

Abstract nouns are nouns that name concepts, ideas, and qualities. In German abstract nouns are often created by adding suffixes to a verb, adjective, or other noun.

The suffix ung

The suffix ung is often added to a verb to create a noun. These nouns are equivalent to English nouns ending in ing, tion, and ment. German nouns ending in ung are always feminine.

die Aufregung	the excitement
die Begegnung	the encounter
die Behandlung	the treatment
die Entdeckung	the discovery
die Erfahrung	the experience
die Erklärung	the explanation
die Kleidung	the clothing
die Öffnung	the opening
die Ordnung	the order
die Regierung	the government

The suffix nis

The German suffix nis is equivalent to the English suffix ness, and is used to describe a condition, activity, or function. Nouns that end in nis are usually neuter and their plural form is nisse.

das Ärgernis	the annoyance
das Bedürfnis	the need
die Besorgnis	the anxiety, the concern
das Ereignis	the event
das Erzeugnis	the product
die Finsternis	the darkness
das Gedächtnis	the memory
das Geheimnis	the secret
das Verständnis	the understanding

The suffix e

The suffix e is added to the stem of some verbs to create a noun. These nouns are feminine and add an n for the plural form.

The suffix e is also added to some adjectives to create nouns. These nouns are also feminine and add an n for the plural form.

die Liebe	the love
die Wäsche	the laundry
die Lüge	the lie
die Sprache	the language
die Fläche	the surface, the area
die Glätte	the smoothness
die Größe	the size
die Güte	the goodness
die Länge	the length
die Stärke	the strength
die Wärme	the warmth
die Tiefe	the depth

The suffixes heit and keit

The suffixes heit and keit are added to many adjectives to create abstract nouns. These nouns are feminine.

die Ehrlichkeit	the honesty
die Freundlichkeit	the friendliness
die Fröhlichkeit	the cheerfulness
die Langsamkeit	the slowness
die Freiheit	the freedom
die Sicherheit	the safety, the security

The suffixes er and erin

The suffixes er and erin are added to a verb to describe the person doing the action. For males er is used and for females erin is used. The plural form of erin is erinnen and the plural form of er is also er.

The suffix er can also be used to name the result of an action or the object that does the action.

der Arbeiter, die Arbeiterin	the worker
der Besitzer, die Besitzerin	the owner
der Fehler	the mistake, the error
der Fernseher	the television
der Lichtschalter	the light switch

There are several other suffixes in German that can be used to create an abstract noun from a verb or adjective, such as tät, ler, ling, schaft, and tum.