How to Say “Where are you going?” in Chinese
Small talk and travel · HSK 2
"Where are you going?" in Chinese is 你去哪儿？ (nǐ qù nǎr?). In China, 你去哪儿? often functions as a casual greeting rather than a literal question; like 'what's up?' in English. Neighbors or coworkers pass each other in the hallway and just ask where you're headed; a vague 出去一下 (going out for a bit) is a perfectly acceptable answer.
Primary translation
你去哪儿？
nǐ qù nǎr?
Traditional: 你去哪兒？
Variants by register
Formal
您去哪里？
nín qù nǎ lǐ?
Casual
去哪儿啊？
qù nǎr a?
When to use it
In China, 你去哪儿? often functions as a casual greeting rather than a literal question; like 'what's up?' in English. Neighbors or coworkers pass each other in the hallway and just ask where you're headed; a vague 出去一下 (going out for a bit) is a perfectly acceptable answer. The 儿 (ér) suffix on 哪儿 is classic northern/Beijing Mandarin; southerners and Taiwanese speakers prefer 哪里 (nǎlǐ) with no 儿化 (érhuà). Use 您 (nín) instead of 你 (nǐ) for elders, bosses, or customers. The final particle 啊 softens it into friendly small talk.
Example sentences
你去哪儿？要一起走吗？
Nǐ qù nǎr? Yào yì qǐ zǒu ma?
Where are you going? Want to walk together?
您去哪里？我帮您叫车。
Nín qù nǎ lǐ? Wǒ bāng nín jiào chē.
Where are you going? I'll call a car for you.
去哪儿啊，穿得这么漂亮？
Qù nǎr a, chuān de zhè me piào liang?
Where are you going, dressed so nicely?