What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of Wo (where), wohnst (live/reside) and du (you, singular informal).
Which one should you use?
Use Wo wohnt ihr? instead of Wo wohnst du? if you are asking a group of two or more people you know well. For a more polite version of the direct question, you can use Wo wohnen Sie? or Können Sie mir sagen, wo Sie wohnen? Similarly, the informal version for the indirect question is Kannst du mir sagen, wo du wohnst?
How does it change in a sentence?
When answering the question, the verb wohnen changes to wohne to match the first-person singular subject ich in the phrase Ich wohne in…
What mistakes should you avoid?
Avoid using Wo lebst du? While leben means "to live", it refers to being alive or living a certain lifestyle, whereas wohnen specifically refers to your place of residence.
Did you know?
- While wohnen describes your apartment or house, the word Heimat describes the emotional place where you 'belong', a concept English has no single word for.
- The informal du is used so widely in certain modern German workplaces that using the polite Sie in Wo wohnen Sie? can actually make a colleague feel excluded.
- The German word du is a direct relative of the archaic English word 'thou'.
Examples in context
- Wo wohnst du?Where do you live?
Example conversation
Two acquaintances meet at a party and start getting to know each other.
- SarahHallo, ich bin Sarah. Wo wohnst du?Hello, I am Sarah. Where do you live?
- JulianIch bin Julian. Ich wohne in Berlin.I am Julian. I live in Berlin.
- SarahBerlin ist sehr schön!Berlin is very beautiful!
- JulianJa, das stimmt. Und du?Yes, that's true. And you?
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries du, wo, CC BY-SA 4.0.
