noun
bone, bones
B1
Knochen (der) means 'bone' or 'bones'. Masculine noun. Plural is Knochen (same form), so context or article shows number. Singular genitive des Knochens; plural genitive der Knochen. Declines regularly for a weak genitive singular -s. Used for anatomical bones and idiomatic expressions.
Examples
Die Knochen des Skeletts wurden sorgfältig beschriftet.
The bones of the skeleton were carefully labeled.
Der Hund hat einen Knochen im Garten vergraben.
The dog has buried a bone in the garden.
Der Hund vergrub den Knochen im Garten, weil es draußen nass war.
The dog buried the bone in the garden because it was wet outside.
Details
Mnemonics
imagine a white bone shape like a cartoon bone
sounds like 'no-ken' — think 'no candy' to remember the hard structure
der Knochen — 'der' like other solid, singular objects (strong, masculine)
Notes
Refers to a bone (singular) or bones (plural). In anatomical contexts appears frequently; plural often identical in form or 'Knochen' for both.