German Phrase
Was hat dich dazu gebracht, dich so zu fühlen?
Meaning
The sentence asks for the cause or trigger behind someone's current emotional state. It literally translates to “What has brought you to feel that way?” and is used to probe the reason behind a feeling.
When to use
Use this question when you want to understand why someone feels a certain way, especially in more thoughtful or semi‑formal conversations. It shows genuine interest without being overly intrusive.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Washatdichdazugebracht,dichsozufühlen?
Present Perfect (Perfekt)
The auxiliary verb 'hat' (from 'haben') combines with the past participle 'gebracht' to form the present perfect, indicating a completed action in the past.
Reflexive Pronoun
The pronoun 'dich' is used twice because the verb 'bringen' can take a reflexive object, and the infinitive clause 'dich so zu fühlen' also requires a reflexive pronoun.
Dazu as a Prepositional Adverb
'Dazu' links the cause ('what') with the result ('to feel that way'), roughly meaning 'to that' or 'for that reason'.
Infinitive Clause with 'zu'
The construction 'so zu fühlen' is an infinitive clause introduced by 'zu', describing the resulting state.
Comma before Infinitive Clause
German punctuation requires a comma before an infinitive clause that is expanded by a preceding word (here 'dazu').
🗨In Conversation
Was hat dich dazu gebracht, dich so zu fühlen?
What made you feel that way?
Ich habe gerade die Nachrichten über die Umweltkrise gesehen.
I just saw the news about the climate crisis.
✕Common Mistakes
Was hat du dazu gebracht, du so zu fühlen?
The verb 'bringen' requires the reflexive accusative 'dich', not the nominative 'du'.
Was ist dich dazu gebracht, dich so zu fühlen?
The perfect tense uses 'hat' with 'gebracht', not 'ist'.
Was hat dich dazu gebracht dich so zu fühlen?
A comma is required before the infinitive clause 'dich so zu fühlen'.
Was hat dich dazu gebracht, dich so fühlen?
If you omit 'zu', the infinitive clause becomes ungrammatical.
↔Alternatives
Was lässt dich so fühlen?
What makes you feel like that?
Was hat dazu geführt, dass du dich so fühlst?
What has led to you feeling that way?
Warum fühlst du dich so?
Why do you feel like this?
Cultural Tip
German speakers tend to be direct, but adding 'dazu' softens the question and signals that you are looking for a specific cause rather than a vague opinion. In informal settings you might drop the reflexive pronoun in the second clause (e.g., 'Was hat dich dazu gebracht, so zu fühlen?').