Hallo, wie geht es dir?
In German, the phrase "hi, how are you?" is expressed as Hallo, wie geht es dir?
This phrase is a friendly greeting used to start a conversation and ask about someone's well-being. You may also see or hear variations like Wie geht's? for "How's it going?" or Wie geht es dir heute? to ask "How are you today?" in an informal setting.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase wie geht es dir? literally translates to "how goes it to you?" in English.
Which one should you use?
The form depends on whom you are addressing. Use Wie geht es Ihnen? to say "How are you?" in a formal context, and Wie geht es euch? when addressing a group of people you know well, such as friends or family.
How does it change in a sentence?
In the expression wie geht es dir?, the word dir is the dative form of du (you). This specific case is required because the verb gehen requires the dative case in this expression. When speaking to superiors, strangers or elders to be polite, you should use wie geht es Ihnen? instead of wie geht es dir?
When do people say it?
When someone asks you Wie geht es dir?, a common and natural way to respond is Gut, danke! (Good, thanks!).
Did you know?
- A common response to Wie geht's? is Muss ja, which literally means 'must yes' and implies 'I'm getting by' or 'it has to go on'.
- The word hallo shares a common ancestor with the French expression holà, which was historically used to shout 'hey, stop!' to get someone's attention.
- In certain parts of Germany, such as Bavaria, you might hear people skip hallo entirely and use local greetings like Servus to achieve the same friendly effect.
Example conversation
Hannah and Lukas meet at a cafe.
- HannahHallo, wie geht es dir?Hi, how are you?
- LukasMir geht es gut, danke. Und dir?I'm doing well, thanks. And you?
- HannahAuch gut, danke der Nachfrage.Also good, thanks for asking.
- LukasDas freut mich zu hören, Hannah.I'm glad to hear that, Hannah.
