Bist du schon im Garten?

Are you already in the garden?

Breakdown of Bist du schon im Garten?

• sein: to be
• du: you
• der Garten: the garden
• im: in the; (masculine or neuter)

Questions & Answers about Bist du schon im Garten?

Why does the sentence start with Bist instead of Du? In English we say “Are you…”, but is that the same rule?

Yes. German yes/no questions also start with the verb, just like English:

• Statement: Du bist schon im Garten. – You are already in the garden.
• Question: Bist du schon im Garten? – Are you already in the garden?

Rule:

• In a statement, the verb is in second position: Du (1st), bist (2nd).
• In a yes/no question, the verb comes first, then the subject: Bist (1st), du (2nd).

So Bist du…? directly corresponds to Are you…? in English.

Why is it bist and not bistest or something similar? How is sein conjugated?