Bist du schon da?

to be

Breakdown of Bist du schon da?

• du: you
• schon: already
• da: here

Questions & Answers about Bist du schon da?

Why does the sentence start with bist instead of du?

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?

What does bist mean here?

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.

Why is it du? Is this informal?