You ask how someone is in Urdu with a word that changes for the person you ask: کیسے for a man and کیسی for a woman. Urdu is written from right to left in the Nastaliq style of the Arabic script, and the Latin reading under each phrase writes long vowels double (aa, ee, oo) and does not mark the tongue-curled ٹ, ڈ and ڑ or the aspirated letters, so ٹھیک is theek. Every phrase was checked against Wikivoyage and Wiktionary on 9 November 2026.
| Urdu | English | Who you ask | Style |
|---|---|---|---|
| آپ کیسے ہیں؟aap kaise hain? | How are you? | A man | Polite |
| آپ کیسی ہیں؟aap kaisee hain? | How are you? | A woman | Polite |
| آپ کا کیا حال ہے؟aap kaa kyaa haal hai? | How are you? | Anyone | Polite |
| تم کیسے ہو؟tum kaise ho? | How are you? | A man you know well, or someone younger | Friendly |
| تم کیسی ہو؟tum kaisee ho? | How are you? | A woman you know well, or someone younger | Friendly |
| کیا حال ہے؟kyaa haal hai? | How is it going? | Anyone you know | Casual |
Wikivoyage lists آپ کا کیا حال ہے (aap kaa kyaa haal hai) and آپ کیسے ہیں (aap kaise hain) as the two ways to ask. The first has no ending that changes with gender, because حال (haal) means "condition" and does not change. The second does. A man or a woman can ask either question, and the ending follows the person who is asked.
کیسا (kaisaa) means "what kind of". It comes in three forms: کیسا for one man, کیسے for several men, and کیسی for women. Wiktionary describes آپ (aap) as the most formal "you", used for elders and people of higher status, and says it takes plural verbs and adjectives even for one person. So a man you address with آپ gets کیسے and a woman gets کیسی, and the verb is ہیں (hain).
The same page puts تم (tum) in the middle, as semiformal and familiar, and تو (too) at the bottom, as intimate and sometimes contemptuous. Start with آپ and move to تم only when the other person does.
| Urdu | English | Said by |
|---|---|---|
| میں ٹھیک ہوں۔main theek hoon. | I am fine. | Anyone |
| میں ٹھیک ہوں، الحمد للہ۔main theek hoon, alhamdulillaah. | I am fine, thank God. | Anyone |
| اور آپ؟aur aap? | And you? | Anyone, politely |
| میں اچھا ہوں۔main achhaa hoon. | I am good. | A man |
| میں اچھی ہوں۔main achhee hoon. | I am good. | A woman |
(theek) stays the same for a man and a woman, so میں ٹھیک ہوں (main theek hoon) is the answer to learn first. اچھا (achhaa) changes: a man says اچھا and a woman says اچھی (achhee). Wikivoyage gives الحمد للہ (alhamdulillaah) after "I am fine". It comes from the Arabic phrase meaning "praise be to God", and Wiktionary lists the Urdu spelling.
Two people meet and greet each other first:
| Urdu | English |
|---|---|
| السلام علیکم! آپ کیسی ہیں؟assalaam alaikum! aap kaisee hain? | Peace be upon you! How are you? |
| وعلیکم السلام! میں ٹھیک ہوں، الحمد للہ۔ اور آپ؟waalaikum assalaam! main theek hoon, alhamdulillaah. aur aap? | And upon you, peace! I am fine, thank God. And you? |
| میں بھی ٹھیک ہوں، شکریہ۔main bhee theek hoon, shukriyaa. | I am fine too, thank you. |
Two friends in a hurry:
| Urdu | English |
|---|---|
| کیا حال ہے؟kyaa haal hai? | How is it going? |
| سب ٹھیک ہے۔ تم کیسے ہو؟sab theek hai. tum kaise ho? | Everything is fine. How are you? |
Wikivoyage gives السلام علیکم (assalaam alaikum) as the greeting to start with and says the short "salam" is thought rude, even with friends. A reply is expected, and the usual one is وعلیکم السلام (waalaikum assalaam). For thank you, Wikivoyage lists (shukriyaa).
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|---|
| Asking a woman آپ کیسے ہیں because the speaker is a man. | The ending follows the person you ask. A woman gets آپ کیسی ہیں. |
| Saying آپ کیسا ہیں. | کیسا goes with ہے, as in تو کیسا ہے. After آپ the verb is ہیں, so use کیسے ہیں or کیسی ہیں. |
| A woman saying میں اچھا ہوں. | Use اچھی for yourself. Or say میں ٹھیک ہوں, which is the same for everyone. |
| Answering السلام علیکم with "salam" or nothing. | Wikivoyage says a reply is expected, so say وعلیکم السلام. |
Hindi and Urdu share their everyday grammar and basic vocabulary, so the sentence is the same: آپ کیسے ہیں and the Hindi आप कैसे हैं sound alike. The scripts differ, and Urdu draws more of its formal words from Persian and Arabic, such as الحمد للہ and . Our page how are you in Hindi shows the Devanagari spelling.
To read the phrases yourself, start with the Urdu alphabet course, or read do you need to know the Urdu alphabet to learn Urdu. For a plan, read the best way to learn Urdu.
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Which Urdu Phrase Is Safest for a Stranger?
Use آپ کا کیا حال ہے (aap kaa kyaa haal hai). It is polite, and it has no ending that depends on whether the other person is a man or a woman.
Which Urdu App Should a Beginner Choose?
If you are serious about learning Urdu, start with Bubblegum. Poppy, your AI tutor, writes lessons at your level about things you like. For other apps, see our Urdu app comparison.
Is Bubblegum Free?
Yes. Lessons Poppy wrote for other learners are free for everyone to read. Custom lessons cost us money to make, so you need Bubblegum Pro for unlimited custom lessons.
Sources
- Wikivoyage: Urdu phrasebook (آپ کا کیا حال ہے, آپ کیسے ہیں, میں ٹھیک ہوں الحمد للہ, السلام علیکم, شکریہ)
- Wiktionary: آپ (the most formal you, with plural agreement; تم and تو as the lower levels)
- Wiktionary: कैसा (Hindi entry that gives the Urdu spelling کیسا and the forms कैसा, कैसे, कैसी)
- Wiktionary: क्या हाल है (Hindi entry that gives the Urdu spelling کیا حال ہے)
- Wiktionary: الحمد للہ (praise be to God, descendant of the Arabic phrase)
- Wikipedia: Hindustani language (Hindi and Urdu share their everyday grammar and core vocabulary)
