Selected forms for this construction
| Case | Masculine | Neuter | Feminine | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genitiv | dessen | dessen | deren | deren |
Build a noun phrase after dessen or deren
Die Nachbarin, deren Hund oft bellt, zieht um. Choose deren from feminine die Nachbarin, not from masculine der Hund. The dog is the subject of the relative clause; the possessive connection is expressed by genitive deren. No extra definite article is needed before Hund.
The noun after dessen/deren still receives its own case: die Nachbarin, mit deren neuem Fahrrad ich fahre. Here mit makes the bicycle phrase dative, so the adjective is neuem. Deren itself stays unchanged. Compare der Nachbar, dessen neues Fahrrad hier steht: masculine antecedent, hence dessen, but the bicycle phrase is nominative.
Check the construction in context
Choose your answer before opening the explanation. Check the whole phrase as well as the form.
5. Complete for the neighbour’s dog: Die Nachbarin, __ Hund bellt, ist freundlich.
deren. The owner named by the antecedent is feminine. The gender of Hund does not select the genitive relative pronoun.
6. Choose the adjective: die Nachbarin, mit deren neu__ Fahrrad ich fahre
neuem. The bicycle phrase is dative after mit; deren does not supply a definite-article ending to the adjective.
Start with the topic overview
German relative clauses: pronouns, case and prepositions · Find another grammar topic
Questions about this topic
Does dessen change when the following noun is plural?
No. Dessen is selected by a masculine or neuter singular antecedent. The following possessed noun phrase has its own number and case.
Sources and further learning
- IDS: Relativsätze mit den Pronomen der, die, das
- IDS: Erweiterung von Nominalphrasen mit Attributsätzen
- Hueber: Akademie Deutsch — Relativsätze
- IDS: Relativsätze mit wer
- IDS: Relativ-Elemente
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