15+ Perfect Ways To Ask How Are You In German

Original blog post: https://ling-app.com/de/how-are-you-in-german/

Are you looking to connect with German friends? Then knowing how to ask “how are you?” in German is an essential question to know to strengthen bonds with the German people, whether they are friends, family, or co-workers.

There are a few things to be mindful of when walking around asking, how are you today in German? While it’s nice to ask, it’s not part of the German culture to constantly ask how people are doing. This article will cover cultural norms when greeting people and how to respond to how are you when people ask you!

Let’s begin!

German Pleasantries And Culture

If you’re from North America, Australia, or the UK, we tend to treat “how are you?” as a general greeting. We don’t actually expect much of a response and certainly wouldn’t expect someone to open a deep discussion.

In Germany, people don’t throw how are you around like they are nothing. Instead, they treat this question with respect. You would only really ask this question to friends and family members and people you haven’t seen in a while. It’s best to introduce yourself to someone first before inquiring about their personal life.

Germans consider being asked how are your serious questions, so if you ask it, you better be prepared to sit down and listen wholeheartedly to the response. In other words, don’t ask unless you genuinely want to know.

When you need to ask someone how they are doing in German, check out all the ways below.

How To Ask How Are You In German In A Formal Way

The formal version of how are you in German is Wie geht es Ihnen?

Of all the ways to ask someone how they are in German, this is the most common way. That’s because it’s the safest way to keep up with formalities. No matter who you say it to, they aren’t going to judge you for saying it wrong according to cultural formalities with the German language.

You would ask Wie geht es Ihnen? in a formal setting, such as to your boss at work, a teacher at school, or to someone at a formal event whom you don’t know. Actually, it would help if you always used Wie geht es Ihnen when asking someone you don’t know (although it would be rare to ask a stranger unless you can tell something is evidently wrong).

Other Ways To Ask How Are You In German (Formal)

• Guten Morgen, Frau Schneider. Wie geht es Ihnen heute? (Good morning, Mrs. Schneider. How are you today?)
• Wie geht es Ihnen heute? (How are you today?)

How To Ask How Are You In German In An Informal Way

The most common informal way to ask how are you in German is Wie geht es dir?

It’s used when speaking to extended family and familiar friends and co-workers you’re friendly with.

There are also two German slang versions or shortened versions: wie geht’s dir and wie geht’s?

• Wie geht’s dir translates to ‘how are you doing?’
• Wie gehts? translates to ‘how’s it going?’

You would likely be using these versions of how are you in German in most as they’re used with close family members and close friends.

The latter form removes the personal pronoun for you, determining whether a sentence is formal or informal. Dir is the informal pronoun for you, whereas above in the formal version, Ihnen (the Dative personal pronouns version of Sie) is the formal pronoun for you.

Other Ways To Ask How Are You In German (Informal)

• Hallo, Lukas! Wie geht es dir? (Hello, Lukas! How are you?)
• Na, wie geht’s? (Hi, how are you?)

8 Best Ways To Ask How Someone Is Doing In German

Common Responses In German

How To Ask About Other People’s Family And Respond

Ich Danke Dir For Reading This!

Thank you for reading this! We hope you learned a lot. We know that language learning isn’t easy, but Ling would love to help you speak German fluently.

We know making friends and not making missteps with cultural language issues is essential, especially among German speakers. That’s where Ling comes in to save the day!

Ling is a really popular language app with over 10 million downloads. It offers German, just one of over 60 languages offered by Ling. You’ll get reading, speaking, flashcards, and writing practice. We have an interactive whiteboard that allows you to write the letters of the alphabet on your device!

At Ling, we also strive to make learning fun! Head over to check it out and learn even more German language skills. Download Ling today and start speaking confidently in German!