où vas-tu ?
In French, "where are you going?" is expressed as où vas-tu ?
This phrase is used to ask someone about their current destination. While English uses the present continuous "are you going", French uses the simple present tense to express the same idea.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase où vas-tu ? is composed of où (where), vas (go, second person singular) and tu (you).
Which one should you use?
In casual spoken French, you may encounter the form tu vas où ?, which translates to "you're going where?" by placing the question word at the end instead of using inversion.
How does it change in a sentence?
Because où vas-tu ? uses the informal tu, you should use où allez-vous ? when speaking to a stranger, a superior or a group of people.
Did you know?
- The word où is a direct descendant of the Latin ubi, which also gave rise to the English word 'ubiquity'.
- The grave accent on où was added specifically to distinguish the word 'where' from the word ou, which means 'or'.
- Depending on the intonation, où vas-tu ? can be used sarcastically to tell someone they are making a mistake in their logic or life choices.
Example conversation
Gabriel sees Manon leaving the apartment building.
- GabrielSalut Manon, où vas-tu ?Hi Manon, where are you going?
- ManonJe vais à la bibliothèque.I am going to the library.
- GabrielTu y vas pour étudier ?Are you going there to study?
- ManonOui, j'ai un examen demain.Yes, I have an exam tomorrow.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries où, CC BY-SA 4.0.
