was getan

done anything/something (to someone)

→ etwas
phrase Uncommon #17,925
done anything/something (to someone) Colloquial German uses was for etwas (“something” or “anything”). The exact meaning depends on context; in questions and negative sentences, it often means “anything.”
GE: Haben sie dir was getan?
EN: Did they do anything to you?

Haben Sie sich was getan?

Have you done anything to yourself?

— Memories of Murder (2003)

Haben sie dir was getan?

Did they do something to you?

— Für immer hier (2024)

Muss hier was getan werden?

Does something need to be done here?

— Do the Right Thing (1989)

Hat sie was getan?

Did she do something?

— Parallelwelten (2018)

Haben Sie ihm was getan?

Did you do something to him?

— La Strada - Das Lied der Straße (1954)

Wer hat was getan?

Who did what?

— The Rip (2026)

Als ob du was getan hättest.

As if you’d done something.

— Der Hauptmann (2018)

Sie haben was getan?

You did what?

— Öffne die Augen (1997)

Er hat nie jemandem was getan, soweit ich weiß.

He never did anything to anyone, as far as I know.

— The Dead Don't Die (2019)

Sie hat doch keinem was getan.

She didn't do anything to anyone.

— Interstellar (2014)

Dann tu so, als ob du was getan hättest.

Then pretend you did something.

— Der Hauptmann (2018)

Ach, Masha, hätte sich da was getan, hätte ich es dir längst erzählt.

Oh, Masha, if anything had happened, I would have told you long ago.

— Loveless (2017)

Hat er Ihnen was getan?

Did he do anything to you?

— Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974)

Sal hat dir doch noch nie was getan.

Sal has never done anything to you, after all.

— Do the Right Thing (1989)

Am Ende hat niemand was getan, nur der Junge durfte nicht mehr kommen.

In the end, no one did anything; the boy just wasn't allowed to come anymore.

— Schmetterling und Taucherglocke (2007)

Wir haben was getan.

We did something.

— The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006)

Es hat sich was getan, und wir wollen nicht locker lassen.

Things have changed, and we don't intend to let up.

— The Rip (2026)