German · B1 · Everyday language
Soft Textures Around You in German
Use gentle, everyday German to talk to your baby about food, water and soft fabric. Practise adjective endings with singular nouns used without an article to describe substances or materials.
What you'll learn
- Describe familiar sensations using warm, frisch, lauwarm and weich.
- Recognise nominative subjects and accusative direct objects.
- Use strong adjective endings without an article: masculine -er/-en, feminine -e and neuter -es.
German phrases for soft textures around you
Warmer Brei ist für dein Frühstück bereit.
Warm porridge is ready for your breakfast.
Brei is masculine and is the subject. Without an article, warm takes the nominative ending -er.
Ich rühre warmen Brei für dich.
I am stirring warm porridge for you.
Brei is the direct object of rühren. The masculine accusative ending is -en.
Frische Milch steht in deinem Fläschchen bereit.
Fresh milk is ready in your bottle.
Milch is feminine and is the subject. The adjective takes -e.
Du trinkst langsam frische Milch.
You are drinking fresh milk slowly.
Milch is the direct object. The feminine accusative ending is also -e.
Lauwarmes Wasser fühlt sich an deinen Füßen angenehm an.
Lukewarm water feels pleasant on your feet.
Wasser is neuter and is the subject. The adjective takes -es.
Ich gieße lauwarmes Wasser in deine Babywanne.
I am pouring lukewarm water into your baby bath.
Wasser is the direct object. The neuter accusative ending is also -es.
Weicher Stoff fühlt sich sanft auf deiner Haut an.
Soft fabric feels gentle against your skin.
Stoff is masculine and is the subject. The adjective takes -er.
Ich suche weichen Stoff für deine neue Decke aus.
I am choosing soft fabric for your new blanket.
Stoff is the direct object, so weich takes -en. Aussuchen means to choose; aus goes at the end.
Hear these phrases and practise them
Tildi plays every phrase out loud, tests you in five-minute lessons and builds them into bedtime stories from your own picture books.
Try it free for 7 daysKey words
der Brei
porridge; soft, mashed food
A broad word often used for baby food. Haferbrei specifically means oat porridge.
die Milch
milk
Feminine: frische Milch in both the nominative and accusative.
das Wasser
water
Neuter: lauwarmes Wasser in both the nominative and accusative.
der Stoff
fabric; material
Used here for fabric as a material, without an article.
lauwarm
lukewarm
Describes something only mildly warm.
das Fläschchen
small bottle; baby's feeding bottle
A common word for a baby's bottle. Nouns ending in -chen are always neuter.
Strong adjective endings without an article
When a singular substance or material noun has no article or other determiner before it, its adjective takes a strong ending. Use the nominative for the subject and the accusative for the direct object. In these two cases, only the masculine ending changes.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine nominative | adjective + -er | Warmer Brei ist bereit. |
| Masculine accusative | adjective + -en | Ich rühre warmen Brei. |
| Feminine nominative | adjective + -e | Frische Milch steht bereit. |
| Feminine accusative | adjective + -e | Du trinkst frische Milch. |
| Neuter nominative | adjective + -es | Lauwarmes Wasser fühlt sich angenehm an. |
| Neuter accusative | adjective + -es | Ich gieße lauwarmes Wasser in deine Babywanne. |
Describing an action happening now
German normally uses the simple present for English forms such as “am stirring” and “are drinking.” No separate continuous tense is needed.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| I am stirring | ich rühre | Ich rühre warmen Brei für dich. |
| You are drinking | du trinkst | Du trinkst langsam frische Milch. |
More examples
Warmer Brei ist für dein Frühstück bereit.
Warm porridge is ready for your breakfast.
Subject: warmer Brei. Notice the masculine nominative ending -er.
Ich rühre warmen Brei für dich.
I am stirring warm porridge for you.
Direct object: warmen Brei. The ending changes from -er to -en.