Tieren

Tieren is the dative plural form of the German noun Tier, meaning animal. The base word is Tier; in the nominative and accusative plural the form is Tiere, while in the dative plural it appears as Tieren. When a definite article is present, the combination becomes den Tieren (for example, den Tieren in the zoo). Without an article, phrases such as mit Tieren or bei Tieren are also possible.

In usage, Tieren appears in sentences where animals are the indirect object or part of a prepositional phrase. Examples include Wir helfen den Tieren im Tierheim (We help the animals at the animal shelter) and Wir arbeiten mit Tieren im Zoo (We work with animals at the zoo). The form signals a grammatical case rather than naming a separate plural concept.

Tieren is not a standalone lexical item like Tiere; it is an inflected form of Tier used to express relationships in sentences governed by dative syntax. Therefore, it is typically encountered as part of a larger phrase rather than as an independent word. The related base form remains Tier, and its nominative/accusative plural is Tiere. Understanding Tieren helps explain how German marks indirect objects and phrases involving multiple animals.