Basic Questions & Answers

Hallo, Deutschlerner. Today I am going to show you a few basic German questions and some sample answers to those questions. When you are done with this lesson, you should be able to answer each of these questions and substitute your own personalized responses. If you want to try it out, I encourage you to answer these basic questions in complete German sentences in the comments. I look forward to learning more about you from your answers.

This lesson is a part of Herr Antrim’s new e-book ā€œBeginner German with Herr Antrimā€œ. Within the e-book, this lesson includes a worksheet and answer key to practice the skills you are about to learn. You will also get access to online flashcards and a whole lot more. Find out more about the e-book here.

Wie heißen Sie? – What is your name?

Let’s start with the most basic of basic German questions. ā€œWie heißen Sie?ā€ (ā€œWhat is your name?ā€ or more literally ā€œHow are you called?ā€) This is obviously the formal version of this question. You could also ask ā€œWie heißt du?ā€ if the person you are addressing is a young person or the conversation is taking place online, where most people correspond using the ā€œduā€ version of ā€œyouā€. You can also say ā€œWie heißt ihr?ā€ if you are addressing more than one person.

In order to answer this question, you would say ā€œIch heißeā€ and then your name. If you are answering for yourself and another person, you could say ā€œWir heißenā€ and then both of your names, but it is more common to introduce yourself with ā€œIch heißeā€ and then your name followed by ā€œDas istā€ (This is) and the other person’s name. For example:

Wie heißt du?
What is your name? (How are you called?)

Ich heiße Levi.
My name is Levi (I am called Levi.)

Wie heißt ihr?
What is your name? (How are you called?)

Ich heiße Levi und das ist Sophia.
My name is Levi and this is Sophia. (I am called Levi and this is Sophia.)

Answering “Wie heißen Sie?” with “sein”

You can also answer this question using a form of the verb ā€œseinā€, which I will talk about in more detail in a few weeks. The form you need with ā€œichā€ is ā€œbinā€. So your answer would be ā€œIch binā€ and then your name. If you are answering for more than one person, you could say ā€œWir sindā€ and your names, but again, it is more common to split the answer into ā€œIch binā€ and your own name followed by ā€œDas istā€ and the other person’s name.

Wie heißt du?
What is your name? (How are you called?)

Ich bin Levi.
I am Levi.

Wie heißt ihr?
What is your name? (How are you called?)

Ich bin Levi und das ist Sophia.
I am Levi and this is Sophia.

Alternatives to “Wie heißen Sie?”

While most people will use one of the versions of the question ā€œWie heißt du?ā€ that I have already shown you, it is grammatically correct to say ā€œWie ist dein Name?ā€, which is a more literal translation of ā€œWhat is your name?ā€ This uses the verb ā€œseinā€, too, but this time, it is the third person singular (er, sie, es) form of the verb, which is ā€œistā€, because ā€œMein Nameā€ is the subject of the sentence and not ā€œichā€. Technically speaking, ā€œwieā€ also acts as the subject of the question, because of the special nature of ā€œseinā€, which I’ll talk about in more depth in a few weeks.

Introduction to German Possessive Articles

Since this version includes a possessive article, you need to be able to change the sentence again based on your audience. ā€œWie ist dein Name?ā€ is the ā€œduā€ version. ā€œWie ist Ihr Name?ā€ is the ā€œSieā€ version and ā€œWie sind eure Namen?ā€ is the ā€œihrā€ version. Keep in mind that the last one is in the plural form, because it addresses ā€œihrā€. This is why the verb changes to ā€œsindā€, the possessive adds an ā€œEā€ (eure), and the word ā€œNameā€ becomes ā€œNamenā€. The two options for answering this question are ā€œMein Name istā€ followed by your name and ā€œMein Name ist… Ihr/Sein Name istā€ followed by each of your respective names. For example:

Wie ist dein Name?
What is your name?

Mein Name ist Levi.
My name is Levi.

Wie sind eure Namen?
What are your names?

Mein Name ist Levi und ihr Name ist Sophia.
My name is Levi and her name is Sophia.

Sein Name ist Fred.
His name is Fred.

“Wer sind Sie?” is not “Wie heißen Sie?”

While it is possible to ask the question ā€œWer bist du?ā€, ā€œWer seid ihr?ā€ or ā€œWer sind Sie?ā€ (literally ā€œWho are you?ā€), I don’t recommend this option, as it is very rude. Also, you might not get the answer you desired. It comes off as if you were saying ā€œWho do you think you are?ā€ or ā€œWhat are you doing here?ā€ So in short, stick to ā€œWie heißen Sie?ā€ or ā€œWie ist Ihr Name?ā€ Don’t forget, until you get to know some people, you should be using the ā€œSieā€ form with most people. If you are using the ā€œduā€ form with someone, you probably don’t need to ask for their name.

Wie geht es Ihnen? – How are you?

The second basic German question you need to be able to answer is ā€œWie geht es Ihnen?ā€ (How are you?) This is the formal version. For the ā€œduā€ version you would say ā€œWie geht es dir?ā€ (often shortened to ā€œWie geht’s?ā€ in conversational German) and the ā€œihrā€ version would be ā€œWie geht es euch?ā€

You could simply answer with ā€œgutā€ (good) or you can follow it up with ā€œdankeā€, to make it more polite. ā€œGut, danke.ā€ (Good, thank you.) You can answer this question with one or two word answers like ā€œgutā€ (good), ā€œschlechtā€ (bad) or ā€œnicht schlechtā€ (not bad).

You can also quantify how well you are doing by adding an adverb in front of ā€œgutā€. For example: ā€œganz gutā€ (quite well), ā€œsehr gutā€ (very well), or even ā€œnicht gutā€ (not good). Obviously you can also substitute ā€œschlechtā€ in any of the examples where I used ā€œgutā€.

Answering “Wie geht es Ihnen?” with a full sentence

If you are going to answer with a full sentence, you need to start your answer with ā€œMir geht esā€. For example: Mir geht es gut. (I’m doing well.) Mir geht es schlecht. (I’m doing poorly.) Mir geht es nicht schlecht. (I’m not doing bad.) Mir geht es prima. (I’m doing great.) Mir geht es super. (I’m doing super.) If you want a version of these sentences that tell how more than one person is doing, you would replace ā€œmirā€ with ā€œunsā€. For example: Uns geht es gut.

As I mentioned before, the question ā€œWie geht es dir?ā€ is often shortened to ā€œWie geht’s?ā€ When answering, you can also shorten it to ā€œMir geht’sā€¦ā€ and your response. This shortening of the sentences should not be done when using the ā€œSieā€ version and you should be cautious using them in any form, as they may give the impression that you are more fluent than you really are.

“Ich bin gut/schlecht.” is not a good answer to “Wie geht es Ihnen?”

You might have noticed that none of the questions used ā€œduā€, ā€œihrā€ or ā€œSieā€ and none of the answers used ā€œichā€. That’s because, technically speaking, the question is ā€œhow’s it going?ā€ and each of the answers translate to ā€œIt’s going well, poorly, or great.ā€ You wouldn’t answer ā€œIch binā€ for this question most of the time, as ā€œich bin gutā€ and ā€œich bin schlechtā€ mean ā€œI am good, as in not evilā€ and ā€œI am bad, as in not goodā€. Most people will understand what you meant to say, but it isn’t technically correct.

Answering “Wie geht es Ihnen?” with “Ich bin…”

You can answer ā€œWie geht es dir/Ihnen?ā€ (How are you?) with ā€œIch binā€ (I am) if you use a different adjective instead of ā€œgutā€ (good) or ā€œschlechtā€ (bad). For example:

Ich bin müde.
I am tired.

Ich bin krank.
I am sick.

If want to answer in the ā€œwirā€ (we) form, you would say ā€œWir sindā€ (we are) instead of ā€œIch binā€ (I am). You can also make a play on words and say ā€œEs gehtā€, which is literally ā€œit goesā€, but is more like the English expression ā€œso soā€ or ā€œalrightā€.

Reciprocating “Wie geht es Ihnen?”

In order to ask the other person how they are, you would simply say ā€œUnd Ihnen?ā€ (And you?) for the ā€œSieā€ version or ā€œUnd dir?ā€ (And you?) for the ā€œduā€ version after your response. For example:

Guten Tag. Wie geht es Ihnen?
Good day. How are you?

Mir geht es gut. Und Ihnen?
I’m doing well. And you?

Mir geht es auch gut.
I’m doing well, too.

Hallo. Wie geht’s?
Hello. How are you?

Gut, danke. Und dir?
Good, thanks. And you?

Nicht schlecht.
Not bad.

Woher kommen Sie? – Where are you from?

As a visitor in Germany, you might get the basic German question ā€œWoher kommen Sie?ā€ (Where are you from?). The ā€œduā€ version is ā€œWoher kommst du?ā€ (Where are you from?) and the ā€œihrā€ version would be ā€œWoher kommt ihr?ā€ (Where are you from?). The answer is ā€œIch komme aus…ā€ (I come from…) or ā€œWir kommen aus…ā€ (We come from…) followed by your place of origin. For example:

Woher kommst du?
Where do you come from?

Ich komme aus Amerika.
I come from America.

Woher kommen Sie?
Where do you come from?

Ich komme aus Illinois.
I come from Illinois.

Woher kommt ihr?
Where do you come from?

Wir kommen aus Edwardsville.
We come from Edwardsville.

Follow-up Questions to “Woher kommen Sie?”

Now you just have to find the German translation of your country’s name. You could also just use the name of the city, but be prepared for the follow up question ā€œWo ist das?ā€ (Where is that?) if it isn’t famous enough (like New York). The answer could be as simple as ā€œIn Amerikaā€ (In America) or ā€œIn Illinoisā€ (same). You could also say ā€œin der NƤhe vonā€ (near…) and a nearby place that might be well known enough to give them an idea of where you are. For example:

Woher kommst du?
Where do you come from?

Ich komme aus Edwardsville.
I come from Edwardsville.

Und wo ist das?
And where is that?

Edwardsville ist in der NƤhe von St. Louis.
Edwardsville is near St. Louis.

Und wo liegt das?
And where is that located?

St. Louis ist in der Mitte der USA.
St. Louis is in the middle of the USA.

Wie lange bleiben Sie in Deutschland? – How long are you staying in German?

The next basic German question they might ask you is ā€œWie lange bleiben Sie in Deutschland?ā€ (How long are you staying in German?) The other options would be ā€œWie lange bleibst du in Deutschland?ā€ (How long are you staying in German?) or ā€œWie lange bleibt ihr in Deutschland?ā€ (How long are you staying in German?) The answer doesn’t have to be overly specific. You could say ā€œein paarā€ (a few) and the appropriate amount of time. For example:

ein paar Tage
a few days

ein paar Wochen
a few weeks

ein paar Monate
a few months

Answering “Wie lange bleiben Sie in Deutschland?” with Numbers

If you know your numbers in German, you could say the actual number of days or weeks you are staying.

drei Tage
three days

zwei Wochen
two weeks

einen Monat
one month

Answering “Wie lange bleiben Sie in Deutschland?” with a Full Sentence

If you want to answer this question with a full sentence, say ā€œIch bleibe…ā€ (I am staying…) or ā€œWir bleiben…ā€ (We are staying…) followed by the amount of time you are staying.

Ich bleibe sechs Tage.
I am staying six days.

Wir bleiben vier Wochen.
We are staying four weeks.

Ich bleibe fünf Monate.
I am staying five months.

Wie kann ich Ihnen helfen? – How can I help you?

The last basic German question or series of questions on my list for today isn’t really a continuation of the conversation example I have shown you so far, but it is an important enough question that I think you need to be able to answer it as one of your first questions you learn. There are a few variations of this question as well, but you will almost exclusively hear them in the ā€œSieā€ form, so I will only show you those options.

The question is ā€œWie kann ich Ihnen helfen?ā€ (How can I help you?) This is the question you will be asked when you go into a German store and you are looking around. You can answer with a ton of different options, but the simple ones are the following.

Ich schaue mich nur um.
I’m just looking around.

Ich mƶchte mich nur umschauen.
I would like to just look around.

Ich brauche Schuhe.
I need shoes.

Ich mƶchte einen Dƶner.
I would like a dƶner kebab.

Alternative #1: Was suchen Sie? – What are you looking for?

If you look like you are looking for something, but can’t find it, they might ask you ā€œWas suchen Sie?ā€ (What are you looking for?)

Ich suche
I’m looking for…

Ich suche ein Buch.
I’m looking for a book.

Ich suche DVDs.
I’m looking for DVDs.

Alternative #2: Was mƶchten Sie? – What would you like?

A more general question you might here is ā€œWas mƶchten Sie?ā€ (What would you like?) It might be ended with another verb like ā€œbestellenā€ (to order), ā€œkaufenā€ (to buy), or ā€œhabenā€ (to have), but the general question is the same and the answer is the same no matter what.

Ich mƶchte den Rinderbraten.
I would like the roast beef.

Ich mƶchte das.
I would like that. (point to what you want)

Ich mƶchte diese.
I would like these. (again with the pointing)

Review of Basic German Questions

Now you have the basis for your first German conversation. As I mentioned before, you should try to answer these basic German questions in the comments. In case you didn’t take notes, the questions were:

Wie heißt du?
What is your name?

Wie geht es dir?
How are you?

Woher kommst du?
Where are you from?

Wie lange bleibst du in Deutschland?
How long are you staying in Germany?

Wie kann ich dir helfen?
How can I help you?

Was suchst du?
What are you looking for?

Was mƶchtest du?
What would you like?

I look forward to reading your answers and learning more about you.

Beginner German with Herr Antrim

Herr Antrim’s new e-book ā€œBeginner German with Herr Antrimā€œ is your guide to having your first conversation in German. Within the e-book, each lesson includes a worksheet and answer key to practice the skills in that lesson. You will also get access to online flashcards and a whole lot more. Find out more about the e-book here.

Lessons within “Beginner German with Herr Antrim”

Herr Antrim
Herr Antrim is a German teacher with over 10 years of teaching experience. In 2011 he started his successful YouTube Channel "Learn German with Herr Antrim". In 2015 he created this website to enhance the German language lessons he was providing on YouTube. He is now the author of his own e-book, "Beginner German with Herr Antrim". He has also been featured on numerous blogs and other sites. *This site uses a variety of affiliate links. If there is a link that leads to an outside site from which you could potentially make a purchase, it is very likely an affiliate link for which Herr Antrim will receive a small portion of your purchase. This does not cost you any extra, but it does help keep this website going. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. If you would like more information about the affiliate programs this site uses, click here.
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