I (the speaker)
Always required with a 1st-person verb; the verb ending alone is not enough in standard German.
Ich heiße Anna.
My name is Anna.
Ich komme aus Berlin.
I come from Berlin.
#3 · Pronoun · PRON
In German, ich means “I (the speaker)”. It’s the #3 most frequently used German word. Below you’ll find how to use it, its forms, real example sentences, and common word pairings.
The first-person singular pronoun, "I". German is not pro-drop, so unlike Romanian or Spanish you must say ich — it can't be dropped. It is only capitalized at the start of a sentence (never mid-sentence, unlike English "I").
neutralAlways required with a 1st-person verb; the verb ending alone is not enough in standard German.
My name is Anna.
I come from Berlin.
Ranked by how often each form shows up in spoken German. The top form cover about 100% of everyday use — learn these first.
| Nominative (subject) | ich | I |
|---|---|---|
| Accusative (direct object) | mich | me |
| Dative (indirect object) | mir | (to) me |
| Possessive | mein | my (declines like ein) |
vs. mich vs mir
mich is the accusative (direct object), mir the dative (indirect object). Many verbs and prepositions fix which one you need.
Er sieht mich. / Er hilft mir.
He sees me. / He helps me (helfen takes the dative).
Ich verstehe das nicht.
I don't understand that.
ich - nominative subject — cannot be dropped in German
Kannst du mich hören?
Can you hear me?
mich - accusative — direct object
Gib mir bitte das Salz.
Pass me the salt, please.
mir - dative — indirect object
| mich | me (direct object) | accusative form |
|---|---|---|
| mir | (to) me (indirect object) | dative form |
| mein | my | possessive |
ich → mich (Akk.) → mir (Dat.): the -ch form is the accusative, the -r form is the dative. Same pattern as du → dich → dir.