kaip sekasi
How Are You
Kaip sekasi? means How are you? A short answer is Gerai, ačiū. (Fine, thanks.)
How It Works
Asking.
- Kaip sekasi? How are you? (to anyone)
- Kaip tau sekasi? How are you doing? (to a friend)
- Kaip jums sekasi? How are you doing? (polite)
Why the dative? Literally, the question is How does it go for you? The person is in the dative, just like in Man patinka and Man šalta. So you say man, tau, jam, jai, jums, never aš or tu. See pronoun case forms.
Answering. Common short answers are: Gerai. (Fine.) Labai gerai. (Very well.) Puikiai! (Great!) Neblogai. (Not bad.) Nelabai. (Not so well.) Then ask back: O tau? (And you?)
A full answer. Man sekasi gerai (I am doing well). In the negative, the reflexive -si- moves right after ne-: Man nesiseka (Things are not going well for me). See -si- moving inside a verb.
Asking about something specific. Kaip sekasi darbe? (How is work going?) Kaip sekasi mokytis? (How is studying going?)
Other ways to ask. Friends also say Kaip gyveni? (How are you living?) and Kaip laikaisi? (How are you holding up?).
Examples (6)
- Kaip sekasi? — Gerai, ačiū.
How are you? — Fine, thanks.
Word by Word: How goes-it? — Well, thanks.
- Kaip tau sekasi? — Labai gerai. O tau?
How are you doing? — Very well. And you?
Word by Word: How to-you goes-it? — Very well. And to-you?
Tau is the dative of tu.
- Kaip jums sekasi?
How are you doing?
Word by Word: How to-you goes-it?
The polite question, with jums.
- Man sekasi neblogai.
I’m doing all right.
Word by Word: To-me goes-it not-badly.
The person is man, the dative of aš.
- Kaip sekasi darbe?
How is work going?
Word by Word: How goes-it at-work?
Add a place to ask about one part of life.
- Šiandien man nesiseka.
Today just isn’t my day.
Word by Word: Today to-me not-goes-it.
In the negative, -si- moves right after ne-.
Common Mistakes
Using aš instead of the dative man.
Aš sekasi gerai.Man sekasi gerai.Sektis puts the person in the dative. Aš becomes man.
Asking with tu instead of tau.
Kaip tu sekasi?Kaip tau sekasi?The person in this question is in the dative: tau for a friend, jums for jūs.
Keeping -si at the end after ne-.
Man nesekasi.Man nesiseka.When ne- is added, the reflexive moves inside the verb, right after ne-: nesiseka.
Related Patterns
- Dative With State Words
The same dative for the person who feels something.
Level 2 - man patinkaLiking with Patikti
Another everyday phrase with the person in the dative.
Level 1 - Personal Pronoun Case Forms
Man, tau, jam, jai and jums are dative pronouns.
Level 2 - Reflexive -si- After a Prefix
Why nesiseka has -si- inside.
Level 3 - labasInformal Hi with Labas
Labas! Kaip sekasi? is the usual opening.
Level 1 - ačiūThanking
Ačiū, gerai is the usual answer.
Level 1
Words in This Pattern
Practice kaip sekasi in Bubblegum
Poppy, your AI tutor, writes Lithuanian lessons at your level. Tap any grammar point in a lesson to see its full explanation.
