A0 Expressions & Patterns 1 min read Leicht

Asking 'How are you?'

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Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds

To ask 'How are you?' in Norwegian, use the phrase 'Hvordan går det?' which literally translates to 'How goes it?'

  • Use 'Hvordan går det?' as the standard, neutral way to ask how someone is doing.
  • Use 'Hvordan har du det?' if you want to ask specifically about someone's personal feelings.
  • Always place the verb after the interrogative word in these common questions.
Hvordan (How) + går (goes) + det (it) + ?

Meanings

These phrases are used to initiate social contact and inquire about the current state or well-being of the interlocutor.

1

General greeting

A casual inquiry about how things are going in general.

“Hvordan går det?”

“Hvordan står det til?”

2

Personal well-being

A slightly more intimate inquiry about how a person is feeling emotionally or physically.

“Hvordan har du det?”

“Hvordan føler du deg?”

Standard Greeting Phrases

Phrase Literal Meaning Usage Register
Hvordan går det? How goes it? General Neutral
Hvordan har du det? How have you it? Personal Informal
Hvordan står det til? How stands it to? General Formal
Alt bra? Everything good? Casual Informal
Hvordan går det med deg? How goes it with you? Personal Neutral
Hvordan føler du deg? How feel you yourself? Physical/Mental Neutral

Reference Table

Reference table for Asking 'How are you?'
Form Structure Example
Neutral Hvordan + Verb + Pronoun Hvordan går det?
Personal Hvordan + Verb + Subject + Pronoun Hvordan har du det?
Specific Hvordan + Verb + Pronoun + med + Noun Hvordan går det med jobben?
Casual Noun/Adjective + ? Alt bra?
Formal Hvordan + Verb + det + til? Hvordan står det til?
Response Det + Verb + Adverb Det går bra.

Formalitätsspektrum

Formell
Hvordan står det til?

Hvordan står det til? (Social greeting)

Neutral
Hvordan går det?

Hvordan går det? (Social greeting)

Informell
Hvordan har du det?

Hvordan har du det? (Social greeting)

Umgangssprache
Alt bra?

Alt bra? (Social greeting)

Greeting Logic

Hvordan

General

  • går det goes it

Personal

  • har du det have you it

Formal

  • står det til stands it to

Går vs Har

Går (External)
Hvordan går det? How is life going?
Har (Internal)
Hvordan har du det? How are you feeling?
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Examples by Level

1

Hvordan går det?

How is it going?

2

Hei, hvordan går det?

Hi, how is it going?

3

Hvordan har du det?

How are you?

4

Det går bra, takk.

It is going well, thanks.

1

Hvordan går det med deg i dag?

How is it going with you today?

2

Jeg har det fint, hvordan har du det?

I am doing fine, how are you?

3

Hvordan går det på skolen?

How is it going at school?

4

Alt går bra, takk for at du spør.

Everything is going well, thanks for asking.

1

Hvordan går det med prosjektet ditt?

How is your project going?

2

Jeg lurer på hvordan du har det.

I am wondering how you are.

3

Hvordan står det til med familien?

How is the family doing?

4

Det går litt opp og ned, men ellers bra.

It goes a bit up and down, but otherwise well.

1

Hvordan går det med flyttingen til Oslo?

How is the move to Oslo going?

2

Jeg ville bare sjekke hvordan du har det.

I just wanted to check how you are doing.

3

Hvordan går det med norsklæringen?

How is the Norwegian learning going?

4

Det går fremover, sakte men sikkert.

It is moving forward, slowly but surely.

1

Hvordan går det med de nye utfordringene?

How are the new challenges going?

2

Det går over all forventning.

It is going beyond all expectations.

3

Hvordan har du det egentlig?

How are you actually doing?

4

Det går sin vante gang.

It is going its usual way.

1

Hvordan går det med implementeringen av strategien?

How is the implementation of the strategy going?

2

Det går så som så, for å være ærlig.

It is going so-so, to be honest.

3

Hvordan har du det i disse dager?

How are you doing these days?

4

Det går strålende, takk som spør.

It is going brilliantly, thanks for asking.

Easily Confused

Asking 'How are you?' vs. Hvordan vs Hva

Learners mix up 'how' and 'what'.

Asking 'How are you?' vs. Går vs Har

Learners don't know which verb to use.

Asking 'How are you?' vs. Det vs Den

Using the wrong pronoun.

Häufige Fehler

✗

Hvordan er du?

✓

Hvordan går det?

Literal translation of 'How are you' sounds like asking about personality.
✗

Hvordan går det du?

✓

Hvordan går det med deg?

Missing the preposition 'med'.
✗

Hvordan du har det?

✓

Hvordan har du det?

Incorrect word order; verb must come before subject.
✗

Hvordan går?

✓

Hvordan går det?

Missing the pronoun 'det'.
✗

Hvordan har du?

✓

Hvordan har du det?

Missing the object 'det'.
✗

Hvordan går det med du?

✓

Hvordan går det med deg?

Using subject pronoun instead of object pronoun.
✗

Hvordan er det går?

✓

Hvordan går det?

Mixing two different structures.
✗

Hvordan går det på deg?

✓

Hvordan går det med deg?

Wrong preposition usage.
✗

Hvordan står det?

✓

Hvordan står det til?

Incomplete idiomatic expression.
✗

Hvordan føler du?

✓

Hvordan føler du deg?

Missing reflexive pronoun.
✗

Hvordan går det med din helse?

✓

Hvordan har du det?

Too formal/medical for a casual greeting.
✗

Hvordan går det med deg selv?

✓

Hvordan går det med deg?

Redundant use of 'selv'.

Sentence Patterns

Hvordan ___ det?

Hvordan går det med ___?

Det går ___.

Hvordan har du det ___?

Real World Usage

Texting constant

Hvordan går det?

Social Media very common

Hvordan går det med ferien?

Job Interview common

Hvordan går det med forberedelsene?

Travel occasional

Hvordan går det med toget?

Food Delivery occasional

Hvordan går det med bestillingen?

Cafe common

Hvordan går det i dag?

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💡

Keep it simple

Don't overthink the grammar. Just memorize the phrase.
⚠️

Avoid literalism

Don't translate 'How are you' word for word.
🎯

Use 'med deg'

Adding 'med deg' makes it more personal.
💬

Be honest

Norwegians appreciate sincere answers.

Smart Tips

Always smile when you ask.

Hvordan går det? → Hvordan går det? (with a smile)

Use 'Hvordan har du det?' instead of 'Hvordan går det?'.

Hvordan går det? → Hvordan har du det?

Use 'Hvordan står det til?'.

Hvordan går det? → Hvordan står det til?

Use 'Alt bra?'.

Hvordan går det? → Alt bra?

Aussprache

vo-ran

Hvordan

The 'd' is silent in many dialects.

gohr

Går

The 'å' sounds like the 'o' in 'more'.

Question rising

Hvordan går det? ↑

Standard inquiry

Memorize It

Mnemonic

Think of 'Går' as 'Going' (life movement) and 'Har' as 'Having' (internal state).

Visual Association

Imagine a person walking on a path (Går) vs. a person holding their heart (Har).

Rhyme

Hvordan går det, spør du meg, jeg svarer bra, og spør deg.

Story

Ola meets Kari. He asks 'Hvordan går det?'. Kari says 'Det går bra!'. They both smile and start their day.

Word Web

Hvordangårdethardumedbra

Herausforderung

Ask three people 'Hvordan går det?' today.

Kulturelle Hinweise

Norwegians value honesty. If you ask, expect a real answer.

People are often busy; keep greetings short.

Greetings are often warmer and longer.

Derived from Old Norse 'hversu' (how) and 'ganga' (to go).

Conversation Starters

“

Hvordan går det i dag?

“

Hvordan har du det med jobben?

“

Hvordan står det til med familien?

“

Hvordan går det med de nye planene dine?

Journal Prompts

Write about how you are feeling today.
Describe how your week is going.
Compare how you feel today vs yesterday.
Reflect on your progress in Norwegian.
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Test Yourself

Fill in the missing word.

Hvordan ___ det?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: går
The standard phrase is 'Hvordan går det?'.
Which is correct? Multiple Choice

How do you ask about feelings?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Hvordan har du det?
'Har' is used for internal feelings.
Fix the sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Hvordan er du?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Hvordan går det?
Avoid literal translations.
Order the words. Sentence Building

det / går / Hvordan / ?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Hvordan går det?
Standard word order.
Match the phrase to the meaning. Match Pairs

Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: How are you (formal)
'Står det til' is formal.
Which is best for a friend? Multiple Choice

How do you ask a close friend?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Hvordan har du det?
More personal.
Fill in the preposition.

Hvordan går det ___ deg?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: med
The preposition is 'med'.
Change to personal. Sentence Transformation

Hvordan går det? -> (Add 'with you')

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Hvordan går det med deg?
Use 'deg' for 'you'.

Score: /8

Ubungsaufgaben

8 exercises
Fill in the missing word.

Hvordan ___ det?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: går
The standard phrase is 'Hvordan går det?'.
Which is correct? Multiple Choice

How do you ask about feelings?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Hvordan har du det?
'Har' is used for internal feelings.
Fix the sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Hvordan er du?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Hvordan går det?
Avoid literal translations.
Order the words. Sentence Building

det / går / Hvordan / ?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Hvordan går det?
Standard word order.
Match the phrase to the meaning. Match Pairs

Hvordan står det til?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: How are you (formal)
'Står det til' is formal.
Which is best for a friend? Multiple Choice

How do you ask a close friend?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Hvordan har du det?
More personal.
Fill in the preposition.

Hvordan går det ___ deg?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: med
The preposition is 'med'.
Change to personal. Sentence Transformation

Hvordan går det? -> (Add 'with you')

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Hvordan går det med deg?
Use 'deg' for 'you'.

Score: /8

FAQ (8)

Yes, it is the most versatile greeting.

No, it sounds like you are asking about their character.

Går is for life flow, Har is for feelings.

No, these are fixed expressions.

Yes, Norwegians expect a reply.

Yes, but be careful with formality.

Yes, some dialects use 'Korleis'.

Use 'Det går bra, takk'.

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In Other Languages

German high

Wie geht es dir?

German uses dative case for the person, Norwegian uses prepositional phrases.

French moderate

Comment ça va?

French is more idiomatic and less flexible with the verb.

Spanish low

¿Cómo estás?

Spanish conjugates the verb for the person, Norwegian does not.

Japanese low

O-genki desu ka?

Japanese is highly honorific, Norwegian is egalitarian.

Arabic low

Kayfa haluk?

Arabic uses gendered suffixes, Norwegian is gender-neutral.

Chinese low

Ni hao ma?

Chinese has no verb conjugation for these phrases.

Previous
Introducing Yourself
Next
Polite Phrases: Takk and Vær så snill

Related Grammar Rules

A0

Formal vs Informal Greetings
A0

Introducing Yourself
A0

Polite Phrases: Takk and Vær så snill
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