Breakdown of Was sagst du dazu?
du
you (informal singular)
sagen
to say
was
what
dazu
to that, with it, in addition
Questions & Answers about Was sagst du dazu?
Why is it dazu instead of saying zu das or zu dem (to that)?
In German, when a preposition like zu refers to an inanimate object, idea, or situation (like "that"), you usually don't combine it with a normal pronoun like das or es. Instead, you combine da + the preposition to make a "da-compound". So, da + zu becomes dazu (to that / about that).
Why isn't there an "r" in the middle of dazu, like there is in darüber or darauf?
You only add an extra -r- when the preposition starts with a vowel (like auf -> darauf, or über -> darüber) to make it easier to pronounce. Since zu starts with a consonant, you just stick da- and -zu directly together to make dazu.
Could I use dazu if I want to ask "What do you say to him/her?"
No, da-compounds are strictly for things, concepts, or situations! If you want to ask what someone says to a person, you have to use the preposition with a regular personal pronoun in the dative case. For example: Was sagst du zu ihm? (What do you say to him?).
Why does sagen (to say) take the preposition zu here?
In German, the common idiom for giving your opinion on a proposal or idea is etwas zu etwas sagen (literally: to say something to something). Because the verb requires zu in this context, the "that" you are reacting to becomes dazu.
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