WUL: Using the question word Woher? and aus

Using the question word Woher? and aus

Woher* = where from, from where

Woher is regularly used with kommen (to come) and sein (to be) and others. This is very similar to English.

• Woher kommt Manuela? 
  • Where is Manuela from?
• Sie kommt aus Italien.
  • She is from Italy.
• Woher kommt Michael?
  • Where is Michael from?
• Er kommt aus Amerika. 
  • He is from America.

*Sometimes you may hear Woher split in two. There is no difference in meaning.

• Wo kommt Manuela her?
• Wo kommt Michael her?

Aus - from, indicating origin

To say aus indicating origin (from) with countries that are feminine, such as "die Schweiz" and "die Türkei", you should say aus der:

• Ich komme aus der Schweiz.
• Ich bin aus der Türkei.

To say aus indicating nationality with countries that are plural (such as die USA and die Niederlande) you should say aus den:

• Ich komme aus den USA.  
• Ich bin aus den Niederlanden.
  • Notice that you also add an -n to Niederlande.

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