der Deutsche, etwas Gutes: adjectives turned into nouns
CEFR B1 · part 2
edumaterial's parts within the level. The European framework does not subdivide them.
The future with werden, and why it is hardly ever usedBuilding the future with werden conjugated and the infinitive at the end, and —what…entweder…oder, nicht nur…sondern auch: two-part connectorsLinking two ideas with the five commonest pairs —entweder…oder, sowohl…als auch…warten auf, denken an: verbs with a fixed preposition, and the da- and wo- that go with themLearning the verb with its preposition attached, as one word —warten AUF, denken AN…Indirect questions: ob and the seven W-words, with the verb at the endAsking politely rather than bluntly, which is what they are really for: Wissen Sie, wo…könnten Sie, ich hätte gern: polite requests and wishesAsking for things without sounding blunt, which matters more in Germany than you would…obwohl, damit and um…zu: although, so that and in order toExpressing purpose and concession, which is what turns two loose sentences into an…The rule, in three lines
In German an adjective becomes a noun without changing shape: you capitalise it and that is it. der Alte, die Kleine, das Beste, ein Bekannter. And the surprising part: it STILL declines like an adjective, so its ending changes with the case — der Alte, den Alten, dem Alten — even though it is now a noun. After etwas, nichts, viel and wenig it is nominalised as a neuter and takes -es.
The usual slip. Leaving it with no ending as if it were an ordinary noun: der Deutsch. It is not: der Deutsche, den Deutschen, ein Deutscher. The second mistake is forgetting the capital after etwas and nichts: it is etwas Gutes, with a capital G, because there the adjective is no longer an adjective but a name.
Why it catches you out. English cannot do this at all: you have to say «the old man», «something good», with a real noun or a following adjective. So the whole construction is new, and the capital letter looks strange. The upside is that the ending is the one you already learnt for adjectives: no new table.