"How are you doing?" vs. "How do you do?"

shelly · Wed Mar 30, 2005 5:02 am *"How are you doing?" vs. "How do you do?"*

Test No. incompl/elem-29 "Responses (2)", question 10

Boss: 'And this is our new employee.'
Jane: '.........'

(a) How are you doing?
(b) How did you do?
(c) How do you?
(d) How do you do?

Test No. incompl/elem-29 "Responses (2)", answer 10

Boss: 'And this is our new employee.'
Jane: 'How do you do?'

Correct answer: (d) How do you do?
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Is (a) correct for questin10?

shelly

Torsten · Wed Mar 30, 2005 15:44 pm *How do you do*

Guest · Thu Aug 25, 2005 20:23 pm *How do you do*

"How do you do" is the similar to "what's up?"

How are you doing is incorrect in every case?

Blazya · Tue Jan 09, 2007 19:18 pm *How do you do*

Prezbucky · Tue Jan 09, 2007 20:04 pm *"How are you doing?" vs. "How do you do?"*

"How are you doing?" is also correct -- it is an extremely common greeting. In the United States, it is far more common than "How do you do?".
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Yankee · Tue Jan 09, 2007 20:14 pm *"How are you doing?" vs. "How do you do?"*

Hi Guest and blazya

The expression "How do you do" is used when you are introduced to someone. You can also say "Nice/Pleased to meet you" in the same situation. To me, "How do you do" sounds overly formal, so my personal preference is "Nice to meet you."

The expression "How are you doing?" can be used to greet someone you already know or to ask about someone's health (or some other aspect of their well-being). It might also be used (in the US) as a response to a very informal introduction. The pronunciation typically sounds like this: "How ya doin'?".

"What's up?" means "What's new?" or "What's going on?" and it is definitely not interchangeable with "How do you do?"

Amy

Prezbucky · Tue Jan 09, 2007 20:18 pm *"How are you doing?" vs. "How do you do?"*

Given that this was a formal situation, "How are you doing?" might not have been the best choice.

I prefer "How art thou?" in such situations. hehe

NO, don't use that, unless you're at a Renaissance/Medieval fair or something like that!

Seriously, this is what I generally say upon meeting someone:

- Hello, how are you?

or

- Hello, pleased to meet you.

or

- Hey, nice to meet you.

etc.

(depends on the level of formality. "Hey" and "Hi", for instance, are not as formal as "Hello".)
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Billie Jean is not my lover. Hee.

Blazya · Wed Jan 10, 2007 16:26 pm *"How are you doing?" vs. "How do you do?"*

Hi Yankee!! Thanks for the explanation it was very understandable for me and now i don`t have any doubt.

Sultano · Sat Jan 13, 2007 18:50 pm *"How are you doing?" vs. "How do you do?"*

How do you do when meet somebody for the first time..( formal )
How are you? among friends , and aquaintances and so on.

Mejcej · Tue Jan 16, 2007 21:32 pm *"How are you doing?" vs. "How do you do?"*

I totally agree with Sultano -
How do you do? (formal) used as a polite greeting when you meet someone for the first time (new employee)

source: LONGMAN Dictionary of Contemporary English

Prezbucky · Tue Jan 16, 2007 21:58 pm *"How are you doing?" vs. "How do you do?"*

The thing is, "How do you do?" is hardly ever said here (USA). It might be a British/English thing, but I can't comment on that.

If you're being formal, you're probably going to say something like, "Hello, how are you?" or "Hello, it's a pleasure to meet you."

...something like that.
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Torsten · Tue Jan 16, 2007 22:34 pm *"How are you doing?" vs. "How do you do?"*

Hi Tom, maybe "How do you do" (which is a statement rather than a question) is simply be a bit old-fashioned but I'm quite sure it used to be a popular phrase in the US too.
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Yankee · Tue Jan 16, 2007 22:49 pm *"How are you doing?" vs. "How do you do?"*

I have never used "How do you do" -- not even during a very formal introduction. There seem to be regional differences when it comes to using or not using "How do you do". Alternatives such as "(It's) nice to meet you." and "(I'm) pleased to meet you" are both polite and standard as responses when you are introduced to someone.

I'd agree with prezbucky' comment that "How do you do" isn't used much in the US.

Amy

Prezbucky · Tue Jan 16, 2007 22:52 pm *"How are you doing?" vs. "How do you do?"*

Torsten

People here would understand it, if someone said that to them... but people just don't use it. It may have been popular in the past. Quien sabe? (Who knows?)

Amy, right on.

---

I've tried to put pictures of myself on here, but they're all way larger than the 7 KB limit.

So I've decided to go with the cheeseburger. You are what you eat, and I'm using the rule of substitution...
_________________
Billie Jean is not my lover. Hee.

Yankee · Tue Jan 16, 2007 23:04 pm *"How are you doing?" vs. "How do you do?"*

Hi Torsten

My guess is that you're probably right about "How do you do" having been used more often in the past in the US. In fact, that's where the greeting "Howdy" comes from. But "Howdy" is definitely not formal and it simply means "hi".

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=howdy&searchmode=none

Amy

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