Published on April 28, 2025
German capitalization rules: What to capitalize and why
The rules that govern German capitalization might seem daunting at first. Why is der Tisch capitalized while laufen is not? And whatâs the deal with Sie vs. sie? Donât worry â German is above all a systematic language, and once you understand the logic behind this system, reading and writing will become much easier.
In this guide, weâll break down the essentials: which words are capitalized, which arenât, and how to spot the common traps that trip up learners. Weâll also share some real examples and tips to help make it all stick.
If youâve ever read a sentence in German and wondered why every other word seems to start with a capital letter, youâre not alone. Hereâs the deal: German nouns are always capitalized. This rule applies not only to proper names, like Berlin or Angela Merkel, but also to common nouns ranging from Apfel (apple) to Zeitverschwendung (waste of time).Â
English uses capitalization much more sparingly, reserving it mainly for proper nouns and the beginnings of sentences.
Interestingly, online learners â especially on community forums like Reddit â tend to agree that all those capitals are actually a helpful feature. Capitalization can make it easier to scan for meaning, especially in a language in which adjectives latch on to nouns, (making them potentially very, very long).Â
Because German nouns are capitalized, you can spot them at a glance. Think of them as little linguistic landmarks in a sentence. In this light, capital letters aren’t merely a formality â they’re a navigation tool.
In German, every noun is capitalized â with no exceptions. If a word corresponds to a person, place, thing or idea, it starts with a capital. That includes animals (der Hund), emotions (die Freude), objects (das Buch), professions (der Lehrer) and even times of day (der Morgen). If itâs a noun, itâs capitalized.
If all nouns are capitalized in German, it stands to reason that names of people, cities, countries and companies are capitalized â just like in English. Youâll see Anna, Berlin, Deutschland and Volkswagen all starting with a capital letter.
The first word of any sentence is always capitalized, even if itâs not a noun. The same goes for the first word in a direct quote. So, whether itâs âGuten Morgen!â or âIch bin mĂŒde.â, the first word gets capitalized. This is true regardless of which part of speech it is.
Hereâs where German flips the script from English. In German titles and headlines, verbs, adjectives and adverbs remain lowercase unless theyâre the first word in a sentence. So, while an English headline might read, âRunning Fast Is Fun,â the equivalent headline in German would state, âLaufen schnell macht SpaĂ.â Only âSpaĂâ is capitalized, because itâs a noun.
Many newcomers to German instinctively capitalize verbs when writing headlines or titles. This feels natural if youâre used to English, but itâs not how it works in German. If itâs not a noun and if it doesnât start the sentence, it stays lowercase. No exceptions, no drama.
This is one of the trickier rules â but also one of the most common. When a verb or adjective is used like a noun, it gets capitalized. This is called Nominalisierung (nominalization). Youâll spot these nouns easier by looking for signal words that appear in front of them, such as articles (das, ein) and certain prepositions (zum, beim).
For example, consider das Lesen (reading) or beim Spazierengehen (while taking a walk). The nominalized word may look like a verb, but itâs acting like a noun, so it gets a capital letter.
What about âIhrâ or âSieâ in German? These words were in fact once capitalized in the formal correspondence of yesteryear. Today, the standard is to leave them lowercase, e.g., sie, ihr, du and dein.Â
Some people still capitalize these addresses in very formal and traditional writing, but it’s optional and fading fast. Youâre safe sticking with lowercase, though itâs something to look out for if you spend a lot of time reading old German texts.
A good way to get the hang of German capitalization is to read short texts and spot the nouns. For example:
Heute Morgen hat der Lehrer dem kleinen Hund einen Ball gegeben.
How many capitalized nouns can you find? (Hint: Heute in this case is actually an adverb, not a noun. Itâs only capitalized because it comes at the beginning of the sentence.)
This kind of practice trains your brain to recognize patterns, and it can help your writing feel more natural over time. At Lingoda, we build these kinds of real-world examples into our lessons, so youâre not just learning the rules â youâre using them.
Pronouns are not capitalized in German, except for the formal addresses Sie and Ihr (where itâs optional but common).
Yes, German days of the week (Montag, Dienstag, etc.) are capitalized because they are nouns, and all nouns in German are capitalized.
German capitalization has its own logic, but once you get the hang of it, it starts to make perfect sense. Watch out for those noun-like verbs and formal pronouns, and youâre well on your way.
The best way to make it stick? Practice in real-life conversations. With Lingoda, youâll speak from Day One, building confidence with help from native-level teachers who challenge you to apply the rules you learn in everyday situations. Enroll in one of our courses and you can learn German starting today!
