neuternoun

Neuternoun is a term used in languages with grammatical gender to describe a noun that belongs to the neuter gender. In systems that categorize nouns by gender, neuter is one of the standard classes, alongside masculine and feminine. The neuter class is defined by agreement patterns with articles, adjectives, and verbs, and its membership varies by language. In many European languages, neuter nouns cover a mix of concrete objects, abstract concepts, and some diminutives or form-based categories, but the specific nouns assigned to neuter differ across languages.

In practice, neuter nouns interact with the language’s agreement system in characteristic ways. In German, neuter nouns take the definite article das and follow neuter endings in adjective declension under different grammatical circumstances. In Swedish, neuter nouns use the indefinite article ett (as opposed to en for common gender nouns) and exhibit neuter agreement in some adjective forms. Dutch divides nouns into common and neuter, with het as the definite article for neuter nouns, while many adjectives and determiners agree accordingly. In Russian, neuter nouns typically form the nominative singular with endings such as -о or -е, and they require neuter agreement for adjectives and verbs in surrounding clauses.

Etymology-wise, the term neuter comes from Latin neuter meaning “neither,” reflecting its role as a distinct gender class separate from masculine and feminine. Not all languages with gendered nouns have a neuter category, and some grammars merge or redefine gender divisions over time. The exact set of neuter nouns and the rules governing their behavior are thus language-specific. See also grammatical gender for broader concepts related to gendered noun classifications.