Why is it das Pensum?
Pensum ends in -um, and most nouns ending in -um are neuter: in a German dictionary, 82% of them take das.
All nouns ending in -um das
Meaning
Examples
[1] If he thinks of work that awaits him again in the morning, he would like to not get up at all
[1] Wenn er morgens an das Pensum an Arbeit denkt, das ihn wieder erwartet, möchte er am liebsten gar nicht aufstehen.
[1] "With over a hundred concerts a year, Liszt gave a workload that had previously had no interpreter"
[1] „Mit über hundert Konzerten im Jahr gab Liszt ein Pensum, das bis dahin noch kein Interpret bestritten hatte.“
More source examples (1)
These dictionary examples can include historical and less common uses.
[2] The workload for the mathematics performance course has increased significantly in recent years
[2] Das Pensum für den Mathematik-Leistungskurs hat in den letzten Jahren deutlich zugenommen.
Declension
| 1 | Singular | Plural 1 | Plural 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nominativ | das Pensum | die Pensen | die Pensa |
| Genitiv | des Pensums | der Pensen | der Pensa |
| Dativ | dem Pensum | den Pensen | den Pensa |
| Akkusativ | das Pensum | die Pensen | die Pensa |
Pronunciation
Dictionary entries include material from Wiktionary. Wiktionary