What is the right article of Auto in German? Auto is a neuter noun, so the correct German article is das: das Auto.
Why is it Auto das and not der or die?
As part of the Der Die Das Book’s Zoo of Rules Methodology, this noun falls under the ‘-o, das Foto rule, which states that 60% of nouns ending in ‘-e’ are neuter.
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Exceptions to this rule
Masculine nouns ending in ‘-o’ (with der as article)
26% of nouns ending in ‘-o’ are masculine, including hot drinks (der Kakao, der Espresso, der Cappuccino), terms referring to people (der Eskimo, der Embryo — a soon-to-be person), and some other random nouns, such as der Euro and der Zoo. By the way, der Flamingo is also masculine don’t ask me why; perhaps the pink colour is some form of camouflage.
Feminine nouns ending in ‘-o’ (with die as article)
The few feminine nouns ending in ‘-o’ are typically either fruits, such as die Mango and die Avocado (yes, an avocado is a fruit!), or abbreviations of longer nouns, like die Disko (from Diskothek), die Limo (from Limonade), and die Info (from Information). Good to know: In Switzerland, you can also say die Foto, which comes from die Fotografie.
Declension of “das Auto” (the car)
“Auto” is a neuter noun (das Auto) and follows the standard declension pattern for neuter nouns in German.
Declension Table of “das Auto”
| Case | Article + Noun | Example Sentence |
| Nominative (Wer/Was?) | das Auto | Das Auto ist schnell. (The car is fast.) |
| Accusative (Wen/Was?) | das Auto | Ich sehe das Auto. (I see the car.) |
| Dative (Wem?) | dem Auto | Ich fahre mit dem Auto nach Berlin. (I drive to Berlin with the car.) |
| Genitive (Wessen?) | des Autos | Die Farbe des Autos ist blau. (The color of the car is blue.) |
Short Paragraph Using Different Cases of das Auto
Here is a short paragraph using different cases for “das Auto” in German, along with its English translation:
German:
Das Auto steht vor dem Haus. Ich sehe das Auto auf der Straße. Der Mann gibt dem Auto eine Wäsche. Die Farbe des Autos ist rot und glänzend.
English Translation:
The car is parked in front of the house. I see the car on the street. The man gives the car a wash. The colour of the car is red and shiny.