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Rank: Newbie
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Location: United Kingdom
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Hi Is there any difference between the two questions if any?
where do you come from?
where are you coming from?
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Rank: Advanced Member
Joined: 8/11/2011
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Location: United States, FL
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explaintome wrote:Hi Is there any difference between the two questions if any?
where do you come from?
where are you coming from?
There is a difference in connotation between the two. At least in AE, the question "Where do you come from?" almost always refers to one's place of birth, or the area where one feels at home. The question "Where are you coming from?" can have different meanings depending on context. If a border patrol officer were to ask it, one had better be prepared to offer a clear account of one's most recent point of departure and current destination. In more informal circumstances, it could mean "What is your point of view?"
"Sometimes I sits and thinks, and sometimes I just sits." - Satchel Paige
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Rank: Advanced Member
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Location: Scotland (via Earth, Sol system)
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I think you will get two or three answers at the same time...
Mine is:
"where do you come from?" = From which town/country do you originate? Where were you born?
"where are you coming from?" = What you say makes no sense - what do you mean? Where did you get that idea? (I think it is much more an American expression, so maybe an American could explain it better)
EDIT - I was right, someone else got there before me!
Though lovers be lost, love shall not, and Death shall have no dominion. - Dylan Thomas
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Rank: Advanced Member
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Location: Helsinki, Finland
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If I enter the room you are in you can ask "Where are you coming from?"
meaning from the kitchen, from backyard...?
If you ask someone "Where do you come from?"
it usually means you are asking whether someone has immigrated from Sweden or Singapore or Tipperary.
EDIT:
DragOn and Leon,
you were few seconds quicker ;-)
I don't know half of you half as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve.
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Rank: Newbie
Joined: 6/14/2011
Posts: 26
Points: 78
Location: United Kingdom
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thanks for the clarification
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Rank: Advanced Member
Joined: 8/11/2011
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Location: United States, FL
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Drag0nspeaker wrote:
"where are you coming from?" = What you say makes no sense - what do you mean? Where did you get that idea? (I think it is much more an American expression, so maybe an American could explain it better)
EDIT - I was right, someone else got there before me!
You are also right that if it is asked in an excited tone of voice it can come off as very confrontational, so it should be used with care. If I recall correctly, it had its peak popularity in AE during the 1970s, so it could sound a little dated in any but a very informal context, kind of how it would sound if I were to describe that "phraseology as real jive, man". 
"Sometimes I sits and thinks, and sometimes I just sits." - Satchel Paige
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Rank: Member
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Location: Germany Munich
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Where are you coming from?
How would an American pronounce that?
1 Where are YOU coming from?
2 Where are you COMing from?
3 WHERE are you coming from?
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Rank: Advanced Member
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rogermue wrote:Where are you coming from?
How would an American pronounce that?
1 Where are YOU coming from?
2 Where are you COMing from?
3 WHERE are you coming from? Each of these can be heard, and each has its own nuance. The first would be most confrontational. It emphasizes the peculiarity of someone's behavior or thinking, and not in a nice way. The second would be the most neutral. It mostly expresses surprise or incredulity, but with greater emphasis could also express irritation or impatience. The third emphasizes the utter daftness of the behavior or opinion, and the word "WHERE" would also be drawn out in time with a slight pause after it as well. I should caution that this is a very subjective interpretation, yet I suspect many native speakers of English from Canada or the USA would agree with me.
"Sometimes I sits and thinks, and sometimes I just sits." - Satchel Paige
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Rank: Member
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Location: Germany Munich
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Highly interesting, LeonAzul.
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