Formal and academic German loves nouns. Where English keeps a verb (“after we discussed it”), German often nominalizes (“nach der Diskussion”). Handling this well is a hallmark of C1 register — and every nominalized word is capitalized.
The main patterns
| Source | Pattern | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Infinitive | das + infinitive (→ neuter) | das Lesen (reading) |
| Verb stem | + -ung (→ feminine) | entwickeln → die Entwicklung |
| Adjective | + ending, capitalized | das Wichtigste (the most important thing) |
| Adjective (person) | der/die + ending | der Reisende (the traveller) |
Das Rauchen ist hier verboten.
Smoking is forbidden here.
infinitive → neuter noun
Die Lösung des Problems dauerte Stunden.
Solving the problem took hours.
-ung noun + genitive
Beim Lesen entspanne ich mich.
I relax while reading.
bei + dem + nominalized infinitive
Er sucht das Neue, nicht das Bequeme.
He seeks what is new, not what is comfortable.
adjectives as neuter nouns
Tipp · Nominalization tightens formal writing, but too much of it turns German into unreadable “Beamtendeutsch” (officialese). Use it to vary rhythm, not to replace every verb.
✗das lesen macht Spaß
✓Das Lesen macht Spaß.
A nominalized infinitive is a noun and must be capitalized.
✗nach dem wir gegessen hatten
✓nach dem Essen
Here the natural formal choice is the nominalized noun das Essen.