wie geht es dir?
The English phrase "how have you been?" is translated into German as wie geht es dir?
The phrase is a greeting used to ask someone about their current well-being or their general state of life.
Which one should you use?
While English distinguishes between "how are you?" and "how have you been?", the German wie geht es dir? is used for both the immediate state and the general period since the last meeting.
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly try to translate "how are you" literally as Wie bist du?, which is incorrect in German when asking about someone's well-being.
When do people say it?
A common and natural response to this question is gut, danke. (good, thanks).
Did you know?
- Unlike English speakers who often answer 'fine' regardless of their mood, Germans may give a detailed and honest account of their struggles when asked wie geht es dir?
- In a formal setting, dir must be replaced with Ihnen to avoid appearing overly familiar or disrespectful to a stranger.
- If you were to use the incorrect 'Wie bist du?' instead of wie geht es dir?, you would be asking 'How are you being?', which sounds like you are questioning someone's character or behavior.
Examples in context
- Lang nicht gesehen, wie geht es dir?Long time no see, how have you been?
Example conversation
Julian and Julia meet at a cafe after a few months.
- JulianHallo Julia, wie geht es dir?Hello Julia, how have you been?
- JuliaMir geht es sehr gut, danke!I've been doing very well, thanks!
- JulianDas freut mich zu hören.I am glad to hear that.
- JuliaUnd wie ist es bei dir?And how about you?
