Ways to say it
| Yiddish | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| וואָס הערט זיך בײַ דיר? | vos hert zikh bay dir? | informal |
| וואָס מאַכסטו? | vos makhstu? | familiar |
| וואָס מאַכט איר? | vos makht ir? | formal |
| וואָס מאַכט אַ ייִד? | vos makht a yid? | informal |
| וואָס טוט זיך? | vos tut zikh? | informal |
| וואָס הערט זיך? | vos hert zikh? |
These phrases are used as greetings to ask how someone is doing. While some forms literally ask what someone is making or doing, they function as standard inquiries into a person's well-being.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase וואָס הערט זיך בײַ דיר? literally translates to "What is heard by you?", while the phrase וואָס מאַכסטו? literally translates to "What are you making?" or "What are you doing?"
Which one should you use?
וואָס מאַכסטו? is used for a single person you know well, whereas וואָס מאַכט איר? is used to address a single person formally or to address multiple people. וואָס טוט זיך? is a more casual way to ask "what's happening?" or "what's going on?" compared to the other standard greetings.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
וואָס מאַכט איר? is the formal way to ask how someone is. וואָס מאַכסטו? is a familiar form used for people you know well. וואָס הערט זיך בײַ דיר?, וואָס מאַכט אַ ייִד? and וואָס טוט זיך? are all informal options.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Lithuanian-influenced Yiddish, Vos zogt ir? is an alternate way to ask "how are you?"
How does it change in a sentence?
In the familiar form וואָס מאַכסטו?, the enclitic pronoun -ו (u) is attached to the verb to indicate the second person singular "you". The formal form וואָס מאַכט איר? uses the pronoun איר (ir) to address someone formally or to address a group of people.
How do you pronounce it?
vos hert zikh bay dir?
Did you know?
- The phrase וואָס מאַכט אַ ייִד? uses the word ייִד, meaning 'Jew', as a generic term for 'person' or 'fellow' when asking how someone is doing.
- The phrase וואָס הערט זיך? translates to 'What is heard?', treating the news of a person's life as something that is heard by the community rather than told by the individual.
- The reflexive word זיך in וואָס טוט זיך? likely evolved under the influence of Slavic languages, rather than purely from its German ancestors.
Examples in context
- „וואָס מאַכסטו?״ – „ברוך־השם.״"How are you?" "I'm fine."This example shows a common response to וואָס מאַכסטו?Tatoeba #10653137 by shekitten, translation #7825843 by tane
- „שלום־עליכם!״ – „עליכם־שלום, וואָס מאַכסטו?״"Hello!" "Hello, how are you?"This example shows how to use וואָס מאַכסטו? in a greeting.Tatoeba #10653987 by shekitten, translation #10653981 by shekitten
- „וואָס מאַכסטו?״ – „אין אָרדענונג, אַ דאַנק.״"How are you?" "Fine, thank you."This example shows a response to וואָס מאַכסטו? using the phrase אין אָרדענונג.Tatoeba #10653972 by shekitten, translation #2289584 by Adelpa
- 14 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends meeting on the street.
- מרים Miriamשלום, אברהם! וואָס הערט זיך בײַ דיר?Sholom, Avraham! Vos hert zikh bay dir?Hello, Avraham! How are you?
- אברהם Avrahamברוך השם, אלעס איז גוט. און בײַ דיר?Bruch hoshem, ales iz gut. Un bay dir?Thank God, everything is good. And you?
- מרים Miriamאויך ברוך השם, דאַנק איר.Oych bruch hoshem, dank ir.Also thank God, thank you.
- אברהם Avrahamאיז שיין צו הערן.Iz sheyn tsu hern.It is nice to hear.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “how are you” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries אַ, איר, בײַ, וואָס, זיך, ייִד, מאַכט, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
