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Nominalisation

B1

lesen → das Lesen. Nominalisation makes texts more compact and formal — typical of written German and non-fiction texts.

  • Nominalised verbs / adjectives (basic)

Grammar → Nominalisation

Explanation

With nominalisation a verb or adjective becomes a noun. The new noun is written with a capital letter and is usually neuter, so it goes with das.

From a verb the noun is formed directly from the infinitive: lesen → das Lesen. schwimmen → das Schwimmen.

From an adjective a noun with das is also formed: schön → das Schöne. gut → das Gute.

The noun often appears after a preposition that contracts with the article: beim Essen zum Lernen im Gehen.

SourceBase formNominalisationExample
Verblesendas LesenDas Lesen fällt mir leicht.
Verbessenbeim EssenBeim Essen reden wir viel.
Verblernenzum LernenIch gehe zum Lernen in die Bibliothek.
Adjectiveschöndas SchöneSie sieht überall das Schöne.
Adjectivegutdas GuteIch glaube an das Gute.

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