German - Follow-Up Questions

Lesson 26 of 158

Learners practicing German follow-up questions in a friendly dialogue. A2-level conversational phrases for asking for clarification and more details.

Goal: Quick phrases to keep a conversation going

Free German lessons with guided practice, audio, and speaking support.

Welcome back! Ready to make conversations flow? This lesson gives you polite, natural follow-up questions you can use right away.

Level A2: In this short lesson you'll learn common German follow-up questions — asking for clarification, details, time and place, and returning the question to the other person. CEFR-aligned and focused on practical conversation skills: repeat the phrases, hear them in a short chat, then practise with quick quizzes.

After this lesson you'll be able to:

  • Level A2: Ask and respond with simple follow-up questions in everyday conversations.
  • Be able to ask someone to slow down, to clarify a word, and to request more details.
  • Practice returning a question politely and asking about time, place, people, feelings and reasons.
A short German conversation at A2 level about a story and follow-up questions like 'Was meinst du?' and 'Was ist dann passiert?'.

Ready? Let's go!

When you tap play on phrases, we track your progress through this lesson.

1. Reading + Listening Practice

Hear core phrases, repeat aloud.

Was meinst du?

What do you mean?

Meaning: What do you mean?

When to use: Ask this when you don't understand someone's point or need clarification.

Was meinst du mit „kompliziert“?
What do you mean by 'complicated'?
Entschuldige, was meinst du genau?
Sorry, what exactly do you mean?

Kannst du bitte langsamer sprechen?

Can you speak more slowly, please?

Meaning: Can you speak more slowly, please?

When to use: Ask this when the speaker talks too fast for you to follow.

Tip: Don't say 'langsam' alone; say 'langsamer sprechen' to ask for slower speech.

Kannst du bitte langsamer sprechen? Ich lerne noch.
Can you speak more slowly, please? I'm still learning.
Der Lehrer war sehr schnell. Kannst du bitte langsamer sprechen?
The teacher was very fast. Can you speak more slowly, please?

Wie schreibt man ___?

How do you spell ___?

Meaning: How do you spell ___?

When to use: Use this to ask for the spelling of a name or word.

Tip: Beginners sometimes mix 'schreibt' with 'buchstabiert' — both work, but 'Wie schreibt man' is very common.

Wie schreibt man deinen Namen? W-I-L-L?
How do you spell your name? W-I-L-L?
Das neue Wort ist schwer. Wie schreibt man das?
That new word is hard. How do you spell it?

Kannst du mir mehr über ___ erzählen?

Can you tell me more about ___?

Meaning: Can you tell me more about ___?

When to use: Ask this to invite someone to give extra details about a topic.

Kannst du mir mehr über dein Praktikum erzählen?
Can you tell me more about your internship?
Das Projekt klingt interessant. Kannst du mir mehr über die Aufgaben erzählen?
The project sounds interesting. Can you tell me more about the tasks?

Was ist dann passiert?

What happened next?

Meaning: What happened next?

When to use: Use this when someone is telling a story and you want to hear the next part.

Du hast gesagt, das Wasser kam ins Auto. Was ist dann passiert?
You said water got into the car. What happened next?
Die Geschichte ist spannend — was ist dann passiert?
The story is exciting — what happened next?

Warum denkst du das?

Why do you think that?

Meaning: Why do you think that?

When to use: Ask for a reason when someone gives an opinion or conclusion.

Das war ein guter Film. Warum denkst du das?
That was a good movie. Why do you think that?
Du sagst, das Wetter wird besser. Warum denkst du das?
You say the weather will get better. Why do you think that?

Wie hast du dich dabei gefühlt?

How did you feel about it?

Meaning: How did you feel about it?

When to use: Ask this about someone’s emotional response to an event.

Du hast den Unfall gesehen — wie hast du dich dabei gefühlt?
You saw the accident — how did you feel about it?
Nach dem Interview: Wie hast du dich dabei gefühlt?
After the interview: how did you feel about it?

Und du?

What about you?

Meaning: What about you?

When to use: Use this short phrase to return the same question to the other person.

Ich war am Wochenende im Kino. Und du?
I was at the cinema this weekend. What about you?
Ich mag Sushi. Und du?
I like sushi. What about you?

Was für ein ___?

What kind of ___?

Meaning: What kind of ___?

When to use: Ask this to get a more specific type, category or description.

Du hast gesagt, du hast ein Auto gekauft. Was für ein Auto?
You said you bought a car. What kind of car?
Was für ein Problem hattest du?
What kind of problem did you have?

Welchen meinst du?

Which one are you talking about?

Meaning: Which one are you talking about?

When to use: Use this to ask someone to identify a specific item from options.

Tip: Remember gender: 'welchen' (m), 'welche' (f/pl), 'welches' (n) depending on the noun.

Ich habe zwei Bücher. Welchen meinst du?
I have two books. Which one do you mean?
Von den Filmen gestern — welchen meinst du?
Of the films yesterday — which one are you talking about?

Wann war das?

When was that?

Meaning: When was that?

When to use: Ask this to find out the time or date of an event already mentioned.

Du hast gesagt, du warst krank — wann war das?
You said you were sick — when was that?
Das Konzert war toll. Wann war das genau?
The concert was great. When was that exactly?

Wo ist das passiert?

Where did that happen?

Meaning: Where did that happen?

When to use: Use this to ask where a previously mentioned event took place.

Das ist interessant — wo ist das passiert?
That's interesting — where did that happen?
Der Unfall war schlimm. Wo ist das passiert?
The accident was bad. Where did that happen?

Mit wem warst du da?

Who were you with?

Meaning: Who were you with?

When to use: Ask this when you want to know which people were present at an event.

Das Festival war groß. Mit wem warst du da?
The festival was big. Who were you with?
Du warst nicht allein — mit wem warst du da?
You weren't alone — who were you with?

2. Conversational Listening Practice

Hear phrases in a real mini-conversation.

Anna tells a short story; David asks follow-up questions.

Two people practicing follow-up questions in German: asking when, where, who, and how to spell a word.

Who asks for more details about Anna's story?

Portrait of Anna in a German lesson dialogue

Anna

Letzte Woche hatte ich ein kleines Missverständnis bei der Arbeit.

Last week I had a small misunderstanding at work.

Portrait of David in a German lesson dialogue

David

Was meinst du? Wie meinst du das?

What do you mean? How do you mean that?

Portrait of Anna in a German lesson dialogue

Anna

Mein Team und ich diskutierten über das Projekt und dann ging alles schnell schief.

My team and I discussed the project and then everything quickly went wrong.

Portrait of David in a German lesson dialogue

David

Was ist dann passiert?

What happened next?

Portrait of Anna in a German lesson dialogue

Anna

Der Kunde war unzufrieden. Beim Meeting war auch ein neuer Kollege dabei.

The client was unhappy. There was also a new colleague at the meeting.

Portrait of David in a German lesson dialogue

David

Mit wem warst du da? Und wie hast du dich dabei gefühlt?

Who were you with? And how did you feel about it?

3. Guided Practice

Quizzes and matching to lock in meaning.

Which phrase asks the speaker to slow down?

Which phrase asks someone to identify a specific item?

Which question asks for a reason?

Which phrase you would use to ask where an event happened?

You said the concert was great. When was that?

Du sagtest, das Konzert war toll. ___?

I have two photos on the table. Which one do you mean?

Ich habe zwei Fotos auf dem Tisch. ___ meinst du?

You briefly mentioned the problem — can you tell me more about the problem?

Du hast kurz vom Problem erzählt — ___ mir mehr über das Problem erzählen?

Match the core phrases

Match the extra phrases

4. Speaking Practice

Say phrases yourself (mic/recording).

Recording stays on your device only. Check speech uses your browser's speech tools when available.

Say this phrase out loud:

Was meinst du?

What do you mean?

Say this phrase out loud:

Kannst du bitte langsamer sprechen?

Can you speak more slowly, please?

Say this phrase out loud:

Wie schreibt man ___?

How do you spell ___?

Say this phrase out loud:

Kannst du mir mehr über ___ erzählen?

Can you tell me more about ___?

Say this phrase out loud:

Was ist dann passiert?

What happened next?

Say this phrase out loud:

Warum denkst du das?

Why do you think that?

Say this phrase out loud:

Wie hast du dich dabei gefühlt?

How did you feel about it?

Say this phrase out loud:

Und du?

What about you?

Say this phrase out loud:

Was für ein ___?

What kind of ___?

Say this phrase out loud:

Welchen meinst du?

Which one are you talking about?

Say this phrase out loud:

Wann war das?

When was that?

Say this phrase out loud:

Wo ist das passiert?

Where did that happen?

Say this phrase out loud:

Mit wem warst du da?

Who were you with?