was
/vas/
The English phrase "what" is translated into German as was. Wiktionary also lists waas.
Meaning: what? (interrogative pronoun) (pron)
Ways to say it
| German | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| was | /vas/ (standard) /vaːs/ |
|
| waas | Alemannic German |
was is an interrogative pronoun used to ask "what". For related meanings, use was für or so to begin an exclamation and wie or inwiefern to ask "in what way".
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Alemannic-German dialects, such as those spoken in parts of southwestern Germany or Switzerland, the form waas is used.
Related words
How do you pronounce it?
/vas/
Did you know?
- In many German social circles, repeating was? to express surprise can be perceived as abrupt or rude. To be more polite, people often use wie bitte?, which literally translates to 'how please?'
- German has a specific phrase was gibt's?, which literally means 'what gives it?', but is used as the standard way to ask 'what's up?' or 'what's going on?'
- The German word was is a direct cognate of the English 'what', meaning they both descended from the same ancient Proto-Indo-European root *kʷod.
Examples in context
- Was hat er vor?What is he up to?This example shows how to use was to ask about someone's intentions.Tatoeba #1256900 by Esperantostern, translation #294268 by CK
- Was hast du an?What are you wearing?This example uses was to ask about clothing.Tatoeba #2109262 by Tamy, translation #1886806 by CK
- Was hast du da?What do you have there?This example uses was to ask about an object someone has.Tatoeba #6625061 by Felixjp, translation #2645657 by CK
- Was können Sie mir darüber sagen?What can you tell me about that?
- Wie bitte? Ich habe das nicht verstanden.Pardon me? I didn't understand that.
- Was machst du?What are you doing?
- Wie meinst du das?What do you mean?/ How do you mean that?
- Hä? Was hast du gerade gesagt?Huh? What did you just say?
- Was ist das?What is that?
- Was denkst du?What do you think?
- Wie spät ist es?What time is it?
- 14817 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Laura and Julian are in a cafe.
- LauraWas möchtest du trinken?What would you like to drink?
- JulianIch möchte einen Kaffee.I would like a coffee.
- LauraWas willst du dazu essen?What do you want to eat with it?
- JulianEin Stück Kuchen, bitte.A piece of cake, please.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “what” translations and entries was, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries was, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
