das
Genre
📖 What does "das Genre" mean?
The word das Genre [ˈʒɑ̃ːrə] comes from French and means a type, kind, category, or style, especially in the fields of art, literature, film, and music. It's used to classify works based on common characteristics like theme, style, or form.
Examples of genres include:
- Literature: Roman (novel), Novelle (novella), Gedicht (poem), Drama (play) (Subgenres: Krimi (crime novel), Science-Fiction, Liebesroman (romance novel))
- Film: Komödie (comedy), Actionfilm (action movie), Horrorfilm (horror movie), Dokumentarfilm (documentary)
- Music: Klassik (classical), Rock, Pop, Jazz, Hip-Hop
There is only one article for this word: das. It is a neuter noun.
Article rules for der, die, and das
Many foreign words → mostly neutral.
There are many foreign words, we won't list them all.
Ge- → mostly neutral.
Nouns beginning with Ge- are usually neutral, unless other rules apply. We do not list all Ge nouns.
🧐 Grammar of "das Genre" in Detail
"Genre" is a noun of the neuter gender (Neutrum). It is declined as follows:
Singular
| Case | Article | Noun | (English Meaning) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | das | Genre | (the genre) |
| Genitive | des | Genres | (of the genre) |
| Dative | dem | Genre | (to/for the genre) |
| Accusative | das | Genre | (the genre) |
Plural
| Case | Article | Noun | (English Meaning) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | die | Genres | (the genres) |
| Genitive | der | Genres | (of the genres) |
| Dative | den | Genres | (to/for the genres) |
| Accusative | die | Genres | (the genres) |
Example Sentences
- Welches Genre bevorzugst du bei Filmen?
(Which genre do you prefer in movies?) - Die Merkmale dieses Genres sind sehr spezifisch.
(The characteristics of this genre are very specific.) - Ich widme mich heute dem musikalischen Genre des Jazz.
(Today I'm dedicating myself to the musical genre of jazz.) - Ich kenne dieses Genre nicht sehr gut.
(I don't know this genre very well.) - Es gibt unzählige musikalische Genres auf der Welt.
(There are countless musical genres in the world.)
💡 How to use "das Genre"?
"Das Genre" is mainly used to categorize works in artistic or media contexts.
- Context: People talk about Filmgenres (film genres), Musikgenres (music genres), Literaturgenres (literary genres), Videospielgenres (video game genres), etc.
- Function: It helps set expectations and describe works. If someone says they like the Genre "Krimi" (crime fiction), we know what kind of book or film they probably mean.
- Comparison: While "Art" (type, kind) or "Typ" (type) are more general terms, "Genre" is more specific to artistic and media categories. "Stil" (style) often describes the individual execution within a genre.
- Pronunciation: The pronunciation is influenced by French: [ˈʒɑ̃ːrə]. Some people might also say [ˈʒɛnrə] or a more Germanized [ˈgɛnrə], but this is less common.
🧠 Mnemonics for "das Genre"
- For the article (das): Think of other neuter words related to culture in German: das Kino (cinema), das Theater (theatre), das Museum (museum), das Buch (book), das Lied (song), das Werk (work)... and also das Genre. It fits the pattern of neuter cultural terms.
- For the meaning (type/category): The English word "genre" itself is the best mnemonic! Just remember it's used specifically for artistic/media categories in German too. You can also think: "A genre is a general type."
🔄 Synonyms and Antonyms
Synonyms (similar meaning):
- Gattung: (Genus, type, species) Often used synonymously, sometimes slightly more formal or academic (e.g., literarische Gattungen - literary genres).
- Art: (Kind, type, species) A more general term, but can fit in context (e.g., "Welche Art von Musik magst du?" - "What kind of music do you like?").
- Stilrichtung: (Style, stylistic trend) Often emphasizes more specific stylistic features within a larger genre (e.g., "Impressionism is a Stilrichtung of painting.").
- Kategorie: (Category) A very general term for a class or group.
- Fach: (Field, specialty) More in the sense of a specialty, sometimes fits (e.g., "Er ist im komischen Fach tätig." - "He works in the comedic field.").
Antonyms (opposite meaning):
A direct antonym is hard to find since "Genre" is a classification. Possible conceptual opposites could be:
- Einzelwerk / Individuelles Werk: (Individual work) Emphasizes uniqueness rather than the category.
- Genreübergreifend / Crossover: (Cross-genre / Crossover) Describes works that don't clearly belong to one genre or mix several.
⚠️ Similar but confusing words:
- Gender (das): (Gender) English loanword for social gender. Sounds similar, but has a completely different meaning.
😂 A little Genre Joke
German: Fragt der Bibliothekar den neuen Azubi: "Haben Sie schon die Bücher nach Genre sortiert?" Azubi: "Ja, Chef! Alle Krimis stehen jetzt unter 'Verdächtig' und alle Liebesromane unter 'Herzschmerz'!"
English Translation: The librarian asks the new trainee: "Have you sorted the books by genre yet?" Trainee: "Yes, boss! All the crime novels are now under 'Suspicious' and all the romance novels are under 'Heartache'!"
🎶 A Poem about Genres
German:
Ob Film, Musik, ob Buch, ob Spiel,
Das Genre zeigt uns Stil und Ziel.
Komödie bringt uns oft zum Lachen,
Im Krimi tun wir Böses jagen.
Sci-Fi entführt in fremde Welten,
Romanzen lassen Herzen gelten.
Rock dröhnt laut, Klassik klingt fein,
Jedes Genre lädt uns ein.
English Translation:
Be it film, music, book, or game,
The genre shows us style and aim.
Comedy often makes us laugh,
In crime stories, we chase the bad path.
Sci-Fi takes us to worlds afar,
Romances let hearts be the star.
Rock sounds loud, classical sounds fine,
Every genre invites us in to shine.
🧩 Riddle Time
German:
Ich bin eine Art, doch kein Lebewesen klein,
Ich ordne Filme, Bücher, Musik fein.
Mal bin ich Horror, mal Komödie pur,
Man findet mich in Kunst und Kultur.
Was bin ich?
English Translation:
I am a kind, but not a creature small,
I sort movies, books, music for all.
Sometimes I'm horror, sometimes comedy pure,
You find me in arts and culture, for sure.
What am I?
(Solution: das Genre / the genre)
✨ Other Information
- Origin: The word "Genre" comes directly from French, where "genre" (masculine) means "kind, type, gender". In German, it was adopted as a neuter noun (das Genre).
- Pronunciation Variants: As mentioned, besides the most common French-influenced pronunciation [ˈʒɑ̃ːrə], there are slightly different variations.
- Usage: The term is internationally common, especially in discussions about media and art.
Summary: is it der, die or das Genre?
The German word "Genre" is neuter. The correct article is always das Genre. The plural is die Genres.