kommen aus
/ˈkɔmən aʊ̯s/word by word
To say "come from" in German, you use kommen aus.
This phrase is used to express that a person has a specific country, city or enclosed space as their place of birth or nationality.
Meaning: have as one's birthplace or nationality (verb)
Which one should you use?
In German, use aus specifically to denote origin from a country, city or enclosed space. This differs from von, which is used for movement from a specific point or a person.
How does it change in a sentence?
The verb kommen must be conjugated to match the subject. For example, use ich komme aus for "I come from", kommt aus for "he/she/it comes from" and wir kommen aus for "we come from".
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈkɔmən aʊ̯s/
Did you know?
- If you say Ich komme aus der Schweiz, you must add the article 'der' because Switzerland is treated as a feminine noun, whereas most other countries do not require one.
- The German word aus shares the same ancient roots as the English word 'out', making them linguistic siblings.
- While aus is used for countries and cities, using von instead when talking about your origin can imply you are just returning from a trip there rather than being born there.
Examples in context
- Sie kommen aus Peking.They come from Beijing.This sentence is useful for stating that they come from Beijing using kommen aus.Tatoeba #4034359 by pinky, translation #3990344 by robbieheslop
- Sie kommen aus England?Do you come from England?This sentence is useful for asking if you come from England using kommen aus.Tatoeba #2324043 by Zaghawa, translation #10999843 by sundown
- Sie kommen aus Schweden.They come from Sweden.This sentence is useful for stating that they come from Sweden using kommen aus.Tatoeba #622244 by BraveSentry, translation #622193 by CK
- Ich stamme aus Berlin.I come from Berlin.
- Sie stammt aus Österreich.She comes from Austria.
- Ich komme aus München.I come from Munich.
- Sie kommen aus der Schweiz.They come from Switzerland.
- Er kommt aus Hamburg.He comes from Hamburg.
- Ich bin aus Frankfurt.I am from Frankfurt.
- Du bist aus Köln.You are from Cologne.
- Ich komme aus Prenzlauer BergI come from Prenzlauer Berg
- 16 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Felix and Laura are meeting for the first time at a party.
- FelixHallo Laura, wo kommen aus du eigentlich?Hello Laura, where do you actually come from?
- LauraIch komme aus Spanien, und du?I come from Spain, and you?
- FelixIch komme aus Deutschland, aus Berlin.I come from Germany, from Berlin.
- LauraOh, Berlin ist eine tolle Stadt!Oh, Berlin is a great city!
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (kommen, aus) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries aus, kommen, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
