Nominalized Adjectives & Participles
What are Nominalized Adjectives & Participles in German ?
In German, adjectives and participles can be turned into nouns (Nominalisierung). This is a crucial concept for advanced learners as it helps improve formal writing and comprehension, especially in legal, academic, and journalistic contexts.
1. What is Nominalization?
Nominalization (Nominalisierung) means turning adjectives or participles into nouns.
- This is common in formal writing, legal texts, news reports, and academic language.
- Nominalized words are always capitalized and take a determiner (e.g., „der, die, das“).
Example:
- Adjective: „arm“ (poor)
- Nominalized Adjective: „der Arme“ (the poor person)
- Participle: „gelehrt“ (taught, educated)
- Nominalized Participle: „der Gelehrte“ (the scholar, the learned one)
2. How to Form Nominalized Adjectives & Participles
A. Nominalizing Adjectives
➡ All adjectives can be turned into nouns when they refer to people, abstract ideas, or qualities.
Nominalized Adjectives Referring to People
- Used with definite articles (der, die, das) or indefinite articles (ein, eine).
- Declined like adjectives.
- Meaning: A person with this characteristic.
Examples:
Adjective | Nominalized Noun | Meaning |
arm (poor) | der Arme | the poor person |
reich (rich) | die Reiche | the rich person |
krank (sick) | der Kranke | the sick person |
bekannt (known) | der Bekannte | the acquaintance |
verwandt (related) | der Verwandte | the relative |
Examples:
Die Regierung hilft den Armen.
The government helps the poor.
Er ist ein Bekannter von mir.
He is an acquaintance of mine.
Meine Tante besucht die Kranken im Krankenhaus.
My aunt visits the sick in the hospital.
Nominalized Adjectives Referring to Abstract Ideas
- Used without articles when referring to general ideas.
- Used with articles when referring to specific cases.
Examples:
Adjective | Nominalized Noun | Meaning |
gut (good) | das Gute | the good |
böse (evil) | das Böse | the evil |
neu (new) | das Neue | the new |
schlimm (bad) | das Schlimme | the terrible thing |
Examples:
Man sollte immer das Gute in Menschen sehen.
One should always see the good in people.
Er spricht über das Böse in der Welt.
He speaks about the evil in the world.
Das Neue macht vielen Menschen Angst.
The new scares many people.
B. Nominalizing Participles (Present & Past)
➡ Present and past participles can also be turned into nouns, often describing people or things with certain qualities.
Present Participles (Partizip I) as Nouns
- Formed from infinitive + -d (e.g., „laufend“, „sprechend“).
- Used to describe people who perform an action.
Examples:
Verb | Present Participle | Nominalized Form | Meaning |
arbeiten (to work) | arbeitend | der Arbeitende | the working person |
lernen (to learn) | lernend | der Lernende | the learner |
sprechen (to speak) | sprechend | der Sprechende | the speaker |
forschen (to research) | forschend | der Forschende | the researcher |
Sentence Examples:
Der Lernende braucht Unterstützung.
The learner needs support.
Die Forschenden entdeckten eine neue Methode.
The researchers discovered a new method.
Past Participles (Partizip II) as Nouns
- Formed from the past participle of a verb.
- Used to describe people or things affected by an action.
Examples:
Verb | Past Participle | Nominalized Form | Meaning |
wählen (to choose) | gewählt | der Gewählte | the elected person |
bilden (to educate) | gebildet | der Gebildete | the educated person |
retten (to save) | gerettet | der Gerettete | the saved person |
besiegen (to defeat) | besiegt | der Besiegte | the defeated person |
Sentence Examples:
Der Gerettete bedankte sich beim Feuerwehrmann.
The rescued person thanked the firefighter.
Die Besiegten akzeptierten ihre Niederlage.
The defeated accepted their defeat.
C. Abstract concepts expressed with nominalised adjectives (Abstrakta mit nominalisierten Adjektiven)
Nominalised adjectives are frequently used to express abstract concepts (Abstrakta), especially after unbestimmte Mengenangaben.
Typische Auslöser:
viel, etwas, nichts, alles, wenig, nur
viel Gutes
a lot of good (things)
nichts Schlechtes
nothing bad
etwas Leckeres
something tasty
nur Trauriges
only sad things
alles Schöne
everything beautiful
Example:
Er hat in seinem Leben viel Gutes erlebt.
He has experienced a lot of good (things) in his life.
Ich habe nichts Schlechtes über sie gehört.
I have heard nothing bad about her.
Möchtest du etwas Leckeres essen?
Would you like to eat something tasty?
In diesem Film gibt es nur Trauriges zu sehen.
In this film, there is only sad stuff to see.
Sie erinnert sich an alles Schöne aus ihrer Kindheit.
She remembers everything beautiful from her childhood.
These forms usually appear in the Neutrum Singular and without an explicit noun.