German word

er

Pronunciation

IPA/eːɐ̯/

Meaning

  • pronounhe

Example

Er kommt morgen.

He is coming tomorrow.

Illustration for er (he)

More examples

Er hat heute keine Zeit.

He has no time today.

Core concept

A short pointer to a male person or masculine noun that is doing the action.

Common phrases

  • Er kommt

    He comes

  • Er hat Zeit

    He has time

Similar words

du: One familiar person being addressed directly.
sie: A female person or feminine noun already mentioned as the subject of an action.
Sie: One person addressed respectfully, especially a superior or stranger.
es: A neuter thing or noun already mentioned as the subject of an action.

Definition in German

Bezeichnet die 3. Person Singular (maskulin), das als Subjekt eine männliche Person oder ein maskulines Substantiv ersetzt.

Word origin

German er continues Old High German and Middle High German er and ultimately belongs to the Germanic pronoun family traced to Proto-Germanic *iz.

Usage tips

  • The subject form er changes to ihn in the accusative and ihm in the dative, so case determines the form even when the referent stays the same.

Opposites

Word lists with this word