How to Ask “Have You Ever…?” in German (Formal & Informal)

Asking “Have you ever…?” in German is a fantastic way to spark conversations and learn about someone’s experiences. In German, this question is usually formed using the present perfect tense (Perfekt), and it can be phrased differently depending on whether you’re speaking formally (with Sie) or informally (with du). In this comprehensive guide, perfect for German for beginners and intermediate learners (A2–B1), we’ll cover:

• Formal vs. informal ways to ask “Have you ever…?” in German (using Sie vs. du).

• Pronunciation guidance for each major question pattern.

• A clear explanation of the German present perfect questions: how to form them and the word order in yes/no questions.

• The use of “jemals” vs. “schon einmal” (or “schon mal”) to express “ever,” and how to say “never” (noch nie) in responses.

• Plenty of real-life example questions (e.g. “Have you ever been to Germany?”, “Have you ever eaten Schnitzel?”).

• Sample dialogue snippets in both formal and informal settings.

By the end, you’ll be comfortable asking all sorts of German conversation questions about past experiences. Los geht’s – let’s get started!

Using the German Perfekt for “Have You Ever…?” Questions

In English, “Have you ever...?” questions use the present perfect tense. German also uses its Perfekt (present perfect tense) to talk about past experiences. The Perfekt is the go-to past tense in spoken German for experiences and completed actions (especially in conversation). So, to ask “Have you ever...?” in German, we’ll form a yes/no question in Perfekt.

How to Form the Perfekt in German

The Perfect tense in German is formed with two parts: an auxiliary verb (either haben “to have” or sein “to be” conjugated in the present) + the past participle (Partizip II) of the main verb. For example:

• Ich habe gegessen. – “I have eaten.” (Perfekt of essen, using haben)

• Er ist nach Hause gegangen. – “He has gone home.” (Perfekt of gehen, using sein)

Basic formula: [haben/sein] + [past participle]. The past participle typically has a “ge–…–t/en” form (e.g. gegessen, gemacht, gespielt).

Haben or Sein? Most verbs use haben as the auxiliary. Sein is used mainly with verbs that indicate movement from A to B or a change of state, and a few exceptions (e.g. sein (to be), bleiben (to stay), werden (to become)). For instance:

• haben: ich habe gemacht (I have done/made…), du hast gegessen (you have eaten…)

• sein: ich bin gegangen (I have gone…), du bist gefahren (you have driven/gone…)

Don’t worry – we’ll see examples of both in our “Have you ever…?” questions below.

Word Order in Yes/No Questions (Verb-First Rule)

German yes/no questions (questions without a question word like what, who, why, etc.) follow a special word order: the conjugated verb comes first, followed by the subject. This is the only exception to the normal “verb-second” rule in German sentences. In other words, to ask “Have you ever...?”, start with the auxiliary verb (Hast or Haben / Bist or Sind), then the subject (du or Sie), then the rest of the sentence.

• Sprichst du Deutsch? – “Do you speak German?” (verb Sprichst comes first)

• Wohnen Sie in London? – “Do you live in London?” (verb Wohnen comes first)

For “Have you ever...?” questions, the auxiliary (haben or sein) will come first, and the past participle goes to the end of the question, with other elements (like “ever” or objects) in the middle. For example:

• Hast du schon einmal Sushi gegessen? – “Have you ever eaten sushi?”

  • (Hast = Have; du = you; schon einmal = ever; Sushi gegessen = eaten sushi)

• Bist du schon einmal in Deutschland gewesen? – “Have you ever been to Germany?”

  • (Bist = Have (literally “are”); du = you; schon einmal = ever; in Deutschland gewesen = been in Germany)

Notice in the German questions above: the auxiliary Hast/Bist is at the beginning, the subject du follows, and the participle gegessen/gewesen comes at the very end. This structure is essential for grammatically correct German present perfect questions.

(Pronunciation tip: “Hast du…?” is pronounced roughly “hahst doo,” and “Bist du…?” like “bist doo.” “Schon einmal” sounds like “shohn ine-mahl,” and “gewesen” like “guh-VAY-zen.”)

Formal vs. Informal: Haben Sie jemals…? vs. Hast du jemals…?

Like many phrases in German, “Have you ever…?” will change formality depending on whether you’re addressing someone with Sie (formal “you”) or du (informal “you”). The main differences are the pronoun and the conjugation of the auxiliary verb:

• Informal (du): use du and the du-form of the verb (e.g. hast, bist).

• Formal (Sie): use Sie and the Sie-form of the verb (e.g. haben, sind). (Sie always capitalised in this use.)

Informal pattern: Hast du jemals…? / Hast du schon mal…?

• Example: Hast du schon mal ein Wiener Schnitzel gegessen?(HAHST doo shohn mahl ine VEE-ner SHNIT-sel guh-GESS-en?) – “Have you ever eaten a Wiener schnitzel?”

Formal pattern: Haben Sie jemals…? / Haben Sie schon einmal…?

• Example: Haben Sie schon einmal ein deutsches Buch gelesen?(HAH-ben zee shohn EYNE-mahl ine DOY-tsches boohch guh-LAY-zen?) – “Have you ever read a German book?”

Both sentences above mean “have you ever…?”, but notice the informal uses “du hast” vs. the formal “Sie haben.” Also, “schon mal” is a contraction of “schon einmal” – common in informal speech. We’ll discuss jemals vs schon einmal in the next section.

(Pronunciation tip: “Haben Sie…?” is pronounced “HAH-ben zee,” and “Hast du…?” as “hahst doo.”)

Use du with family, friends, or anyone you’re on a first-name basis with. Use Sie in more formal situations – with strangers, elders, or in professional settings. For example, you might ask your friend “Hast du schon mal Fallschirm gesprungen?” (“Have you ever gone skydiving?”), but ask a new colleague “Haben Sie schon einmal in dieser Stadt gelebt?” (“Have you ever lived in this city?”).

**“Jemals” vs. “schon einmal” vs. “schon mal” – Saying “ever” in German

How do you actually say “ever” in a German question? There are a few words that convey the idea of “ever”:

• jemals – literally “ever (at any time)”.

• schon einmal – literally “already once.”

• schon mal – a colloquial contraction of schon einmal.

In practice, “Hast du jemals…?” and “Hast du schon einmal…?” mean virtually the same – both translate to “Have you ever…?”. The choice often comes down to usage and tone:

• “schon einmal” (or “schon mal” in speech) is more common in everyday conversation. It’s a friendly, neutral way to ask if someone has ever done something.

• “jemals” can sound a bit more emphatic or formal, and is often used if you want to stress “ever in your life” or in negative/rhetorical questions. It’s also common in writing or serious queries.

Grammatically, you can use either in most cases. For example:

• Hast du jemals Deutsch in der Schule gelernt? – “Have you ever learned German at school?”

• Hast du schon mal Deutsch in der Schule gelernt? – “Have you ever learned German at school (before)?”

Both are correct. The version with schon mal feels like a casual “have you at least once…”, whereas jemals is a direct “ever.” Note that “schon mal” is just the spoken-short form of “schon einmal,” and they are used interchangeably. (The word mal literally means “time” or “once”, so schon einmal implies “already once at some time.”)

Important: When you ask “Have you ever…?” in German using schon mal or jemals, a “yes” answer might be “Ja, schon (einmal)…” (“Yes, I have (once/already)…”). A “no” answer is expressed as “Nein, noch nie….” – literally “No, not yet ever,” which means “No, never.” For example:

• Warst du schon einmal in Dresden? – “Have you ever been to Dresden?”Nein, ich war noch nie in Dresden. – “No, I have never been to Dresden.” (Literally: “not yet ever in Dresden.”)

• Haben Sie jemals Sushi probiert? – “Have you ever tried sushi?”Nein, ich habe noch nie Sushi probiert. – “No, I have never tried sushi.”

Here noch nie = “never” in response to a “ever” question (the negation of jemals or schon einmal in this context). Keep in mind: if the answer is yes, you might say “schon oft” (“many times already”) or “schon einmal” (“yes, once”) to specify how many times.

Examples of “Have You Ever…?” Questions in German

Now that we understand the structure, let’s look at a variety of real-life “Have you ever…?” examples in German. These will cover informal du questions, formal Sie questions, and use different verbs/vocabulary. Practice these to boost your conversation skills:

• Bist du schon einmal in Deutschland gewesen? – (Have you ever been to Germany?)

• Hast du schon mal Wiener Schnitzel gegessen? – (Have you ever eaten Wiener schnitzel?)

• Hast du jemals in der Schule Deutsch gelernt? – (Have you ever learned German in school?)

• Haben Sie schon einmal einen Deutschkurs besucht? – (Have you ever attended a German course?)

• Haben Sie jemals in Deutschland gelebt? – (Have you ever lived in Germany?)

• Bist du schon mal mit dem Zug durch Europa gereist? – (Have you ever travelled through Europe by train?)

• Hast du schon einmal Karaoke gesungen? – (Have you ever sung karaoke?)

• Warst du schon mal auf einem Konzert? – (Have you ever been to a concert?)

• Haben Sie schon einmal Oktoberfest gefeiert? – (Have you ever celebrated Oktoberfest?)

Each of these questions follows the pattern: [Haben/Sind] + [du/Sie] + [jemals/schon mal] + ... + [Partizip II]?. Try answering them yourself! Remember, a yes could be “Ja, einmal” (yes, once) or “Ja, schon oft” (yes, many times), and a no would be “Nein, noch nie.”

Sample Dialogues – Putting it into Practice

To see how these questions work in context, here are two short dialogues: one informal conversation between friends (using du), and one formal conversation between acquaintances (using Sie). These examples show pronunciation in context and how to respond.

Informal Conversation Example (friends using “du”)

Person A: Hast du schon mal Currywurst probiert? (Have you ever tried currywurst?) Person B: Ja, ich habe schon oft Currywurst gegessen. Die ist lecker! (Yes, I’ve eaten currywurst many times. It’s delicious!) Person A: Warst du jemals in Berlin? (Have you ever been to Berlin?) Person B: Nein, noch nie. Aber ich möchte nächstes Jahr nach Berlin reisen. (No, never. But I want to travel to Berlin next year.)

Formal Conversation Example (new acquaintances using “Sie”)

Person A: Sind Sie schon einmal in München gewesen? (Have you ever been to Munich?) Person B: Ja, einmal. Ich war letztes Jahr dort auf Geschäftsreise. (Yes, once. I was there last year on a business trip.) Person A: Ah, interessant! Haben Sie jemals bayerisches Bier probiert? (Ah, interesting! Have you ever tried Bavarian beer?) Person B: Ja, das habe ich. Es hat mir sehr gut geschmeckt! (Yes, I have. I really liked it!)

In the informal dialogue, Person A uses du (“Hast du…? Warst du…?”) and Person B answers accordingly. In the formal dialogue, notice the Sind/Haben Sie… questions and the polite tone. These snippets show how you might naturally exchange experiences using “Have you ever…?” in German.

Boost Your German Conversations with Olesen Tuition

Mastering the “Have you ever…?” question in German will greatly enhance your ability to engage in interesting discussions about travel, food, and other life experiences. It’s a wonderful structure for practising the Perfekt tense and getting to know someone. Keep practising these question forms and try them out in your next conversation or language class.

If you’d like more guidance, Olesen Tuition is here to help! Olesen Tuition is a trusted resource for mastering German grammar and conversation – we offer top-rated German tutoring services and a wealth of helpful articles on our German language blog. Our experienced native German tutors can work with you on phrases like these, correct your pronunciation, and boost your confidence in speaking. Whether you’re a German beginner or intermediate learner, our personalised lessons will help you progress quickly and enjoyably.

Viel Erfolg as you practice asking and answering “Have you ever…?” in German – and happy learning! Remember, Übung macht den Meister (practice makes perfect!). Gute Unterhaltung beim Deutschlernen – enjoy conversing in German!