Ways to say it
| Romanian | Note |
|---|---|
| ce mai faceți? | formal |
| ce mai faci? | informal |
The phrase is used as a greeting. You can respond to these greetings with Bine, Foarte bine or Mulțumesc, totul e în regulă. Another common response is Bine, mulțumesc.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase ce mai faceți? literally translates to "what more are you doing?"
Which one should you use?
Use ce mai faceți? when addressing a group of people, an elder or someone you do not know well. Use ce mai faci? when addressing a friend, a peer or a child. Other variations include the polite Cum vă merge?, the slightly more casual formal Cum o duceți?, the informal Ce faci? for "How are you doing?" and the informal Ce mai zici? which translates to "What do you say?"
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
ce mai faceți? is the formal form. ce mai faci? is the informal form.
How does it change in a sentence?
In the formal/plural form, the verb faceți is the second-person plural form, used for multiple people or the formal singular 'you'. In the informal form, the verb faci is the second-person singular form.
Did you know?
- Using the formal ce mai faceți? with a peer or a child can be perceived as sarcastic or an attempt to create an intentional, humorous distance.
- The word ce shares a common ancestor with the English word 'what', both tracing back to the Proto-Indo-European root '*kʷid'.
- The variation Cum o duceți? uses the pronoun 'it' (o) to refer to 'life' in a hidden, idiomatic way, essentially asking 'how are you carrying it?'
Examples in context
- Și tu, ce mai faci?And you, how are you?This sentence shows how to return the question using ce mai faci?Tatoeba #5076278 by elenacristina260, translation #388264 by Dorenda
- Ce mai faci? Ai avut o călătorie bună?How are you? Did you have a good trip?This sentence uses ce mai faci? to ask about someone's well-being during a trip.Tatoeba #2536626 by ijikure, translation #1716 by CK
- Nu are rost să-mi spui „Salut, ce mai faci?” dacă n-ai nimic altceva de spus.There's no point saying "Hi, how are you?" to me if you have nothing else to say.This sentence uses ce mai faci? to illustrate a point about social greetings.Tatoeba #2536698 by ijikure, translation #1768 by Zifre
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Alexandru meets his former teacher, Andreea, at a cafe.
- AlexandruBună ziua, doamna profesoară, ce mai faceți?Good day, professor, how are you?
- AndreeaBună, Alexandru! Sunt bine, mulțumesc.Hello, Alexandru! I am well, thank you.
- AlexandruMă bucur să vă aud.I am glad to hear that.
- AndreeaȘi eu mă bucur să te revăd.I am also glad to see you again.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “how are you” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ce, mai, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
