Bist du schon da?

Because this is a yes/no question in German. In main-clause yes/no questions, the conjugated verb usually comes first.

• Statement: Du bist schon da. = You are already here / You’ve already arrived.
• Question: Bist du schon da? = Are you already here?

This verb-first pattern is very common in German:

• Hast du Zeit? = Do you have time?
• Kommst du mit? = Are you coming along?

Bist is the du-form of the verb sein (to be).

The present tense of sein is irregular:

• ich bin
• du bist
• er/sie/es ist
• wir sind
• ihr seid
• sie/Sie sind

So bist du literally means are you.

Yes. Du is the informal singular word for you, used with friends, family, children, and many people you know well.

If you wanted the formal version, you would say:

• Sind Sie schon da?

If you were speaking to several people informally, you would say:

• Seid ihr schon da?

So du tells you the speaker is talking to one person informally.

Here schon usually means already.

So Bist du schon da? is like:

• Are you already there?
• Are you here already?
• Depending on context, even Have you arrived yet?

A useful contrast:

• schon = already
• noch = still
• noch nicht = not yet

Examples:

• Bist du schon da? = Are you already there?
• Bist du noch da? = Are you still there?
• Bist du noch nicht da? = Aren’t you there yet? / Are you not there yet?

Literally, da often means there, but in sentences like this it can be understood more naturally as there, here, or simply present / arrived, depending on context.

That is why Bist du schon da? can mean:

• Are you there already?
• Are you here already?
• Have you arrived yet?

German often uses da sein to mean to be there / to be present / to have arrived.

So the exact English wording depends on the situation:

• If someone is on the way to meet you: Are you there already?
• If you are expecting them where you are: Are you here already?

German often prefers da in everyday speech when talking about someone’s arrival or presence.

• da = there / here / present, depending on context
• hier = specifically here, from the speaker’s point of view

So:

• Bist du schon da? sounds very natural for asking whether someone has arrived.
• Bist du schon hier? is possible, but it focuses more specifically on here at this place.

In many everyday situations, da is the more idiomatic choice.

Yes, it is in the present tense.

Word for word:

• Bist = are
• du = you
• schon = already
• da = there / here / present

But German often uses the present tense where English might use either:

• Are you there already? or
• Have you arrived yet?

That happens because being there strongly implies having arrived. So the German sentence stays simple, while English may choose a different tense depending on context.

Common answers include:

• Ja, ich bin schon da. = Yes, I’m already here/there.
• Ja, ich bin da. = Yes, I’m here/there.
• Nein, noch nicht. = No, not yet.
• Ich komme gleich. = I’m coming soon / I’ll be there in a moment.
• Ich bin fast da. = I’m almost there.

Notice how often German uses da in these arrival/presence situations.

You change the verb to match the subject:

• Bist du schon da? = informal singular
• Seid ihr schon da? = informal plural
• Sind Sie schon da? = formal singular or formal plural

This is because the verb form must agree with the subject:

• du → bist
• ihr → seid
• Sie → sind

A very common way is:

• Bist du noch nicht da?

This breaks down as:

• bist = are
• du = you
• noch nicht = not yet
• da = there / here / arrived

This is the natural opposite of Bist du schon da?

Compare:

• schon = already
• noch nicht = not yet

schon is pronounced approximately like shohn.

A few points:

• sch in German sounds like English sh
• o here is a long o sound
• n is pronounced normally

So:

• schon ≈ shohn
• Bist du schon da? has a natural spoken rhythm, often with stress on schon or da, depending on what the speaker wants to emphasize.

For example:

• Stress on schon: surprise that it is so early
• Stress on da: emphasis on whether the person has arrived

Yes, very common. Native speakers use Bist du schon da? all the time in everyday situations, especially when texting or calling someone who is on the way.

It is short, natural, and idiomatic. A learner should remember it as a useful chunk:

• da sein = to be there / be present / have arrived

That makes similar sentences easier too:

• Ich bin da. = I’m here / I’ve arrived.
• Wir sind da. = We’re here.
• Wann bist du da? = When will you be there?