Où travaillez-vous ?
The English phrase "where do you work?" is translated into French as Où travaillez-vous ?
This phrase is used to ask someone about their place of employment.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase Où travaillez-vous ? is composed of Où (where), travaillez (work/are working) and vous (you).
Which one should you use?
In spoken French, it is very common to use the statement structure Vous travaillez où ? (You work where?) with a rising intonation instead of the formal inversion used in Où travaillez-vous ?
How does it change in a sentence?
When speaking to a friend, a peer or someone younger, you should use the informal form Où travailles-tu ? or Où tu travailles?
Did you know?
- The word travaillez comes from a root that originally referred to torture or grueling labor, which is why the English word 'travail' specifically means painful effort.
- In France, the question Où travaillez-vous ? can be a subtle way of gauging if someone is a cadre, a high-level professional with a specific social status and set of benefits.
- To be more polite or indirect, French speakers often replace this direct question with Que faites-vous dans la vie ?, which literally means 'What do you do in life?'
Examples in context
- Je travaille dans une banque.I work in a bank.
- Excusez-moi, où travaillez-vous ?Excuse me, where do you work?
Example conversation
Nathan and Emma meet at a professional networking event.
- NathanEnchanté, je m'appelle Nathan. Où travaillez-vous ?Nice to meet you, my name is Nathan. Where do you work?
- EmmaJe m'appelle Emma et je travaille à la banque.My name is Emma and I work at the bank.
- NathanC'est très intéressant !That is very interesting!
- EmmaMerci beaucoup, Nathan.Thank you very much, Nathan.
