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How to Say ‘What do you do about it?’ in German

Was machen Sie dagegen?

vas MAH-khen zee dah-GAY-gen

[vas MAH-khen zee dah-GAY-gen]

💬 Usage Tip: dagegen literally means "against it". Here it asks how you counter the weakness, so have a concrete answer ready.

Phrase Breakdown

Was machen Sie

vas MAH-khen zee

What do you do

'Sie' with a capital S is the formal 'you'. The 'ch' in 'machen' is a throaty sound, like in 'Bach'.

Example

Was machen Sie beruflich?

What do you do for a living?

Words in this phrase

Was

[vas]

what

Question word asking about a thing.

Example

Was machst du?

What are you doing?

machen

[MAH-khen]

Verb 'machen' here meaning to do something.

Example

Was machen Sie am Wochenende?

What do you do on the weekend?

Sie

[zee]

you

The formal 'you' used in polite professional conversations.

Example

Ich freue mich, Sie hier auf der Jobmesse zu sehen.

I am pleased to see you here at the job fair.

dagegen?

dah-GAY-gen

about it / against it

Stress the middle syllable: 'da-GE-gen'. Both g's are hard, as in 'go'. Let your voice rise at the end.

Example

Ich habe nichts dagegen.

I have nothing against it.

Words in this phrase

dagegen

[dah-GAY-gen]

about it, against it

Adverb meaning against that / to counter it.

Example

Ich habe nichts dagegen.

I have nothing against it.

Guides for German learners

Duolingo vs Pimsleur: Tapping on a Screen or Talking Out Loud?Duolingo vs Pimsleur: five minutes of tapping versus thirty minutes of speaking. What each is good at, what each costs, and which to pick for your goal.

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