danke, gut
The English phrase "I am fine, thank you" can be translated into German as danke, gut.
This phrase is a polite response used to answer a question about how someone is doing. When responding politely, it is common to follow danke, gut with und Ihnen? to ask how the other person is doing. In casual settings, you would follow your response with und dir? instead of the formal version.
What does it mean word for word?
The word gut literally means "good".
Which one should you use?
To express the opposite of being fine, you would replace gut with schlecht (bad).
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The shorthand gut, danke is a more casual, shortened version of the phrase used in everyday conversation. For a more formal response, you can use Es geht mir gut, danke. Informal alternatives include Mir geht's gut, danke, Alles klar, danke, or Mir geht's prima, danke.
How does it change in a sentence?
While danke, gut is a common shorthand, the grammatically complete way to say "I am fine" is mir geht es gut.
Did you know?
- In German culture, if you answer schlecht instead of gut, the other person will often expect a detailed explanation of what is wrong rather than just a polite acknowledgement.
- In some regions of Germany, people might respond to 'how are you' with muss ja, which roughly translates to 'it has to go' and implies a resigned sense of 'I'm surviving'.
- The German word gut is a linguistic 'cousin' to the English word 'good'. They both descend from an ancient Indo-European root that meant 'to unite' or 'to suit'.
Examples in context
- Mir geht es gut, danke. Und wie geht es dir?I am fine, thank you. And how are you?
- Mir geht's gut, danke! Und dir?I am fine, thank you! And you?
- Danke, gut.Thanks, fine.
Example conversation
Julia and Felix meet in a cafe.
- JuliaHallo Felix, wie geht es dir?Hello Felix, how are you?
- FelixDanke, gut. Und dir, Julia?Thanks, fine. And you, Julia?
- JuliaAuch gut, danke.Also fine, thanks.
- FelixSchön zu hören.Good to hear.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries danke, gut, CC BY-SA 4.0.
