Why do we say "Qu'est-ce que tu en penses ?

Paola L.A1Kwiziq community member

Why do we say "Qu'est-ce que tu en penses ?

Qu'est-ce que tu en penses ? 
Asked 6 years ago
Chris W.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor Correct answer

Qu'est-ce que tu en penses? -- What do you think of it?
Qu'est-ce que tu penses? -- What do you think?

It depends on what you want to say.

Paola L.A1Kwiziq community member
instead of "Qu'est-ce que tu penses ?" 
Chris W.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor

Qu'est-ce que tu en penses? -- What do you think of it?

What do you mean by "why do we say this"?

Alan G.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor
I am surprised at this. As a native English speaker I would say that "What do you think?" means the same as "What to you think of/about it?" You can drop the "of/about it" when the context is obvious. I'm obviously not a native French speaker, but I would have thought you can't do the same thing in French, so "Qu'est-ce que tu penses?" is either wrong, or implies a direct object, so it would have to mean something like "What are you planning?".
Chris W.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor
Maybe "What are you thinking." is the better translation, in the sense of "a penny for your thoughts" :)
Alan G.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor
But is that how you would say it in French? Wouldn't it be "À quoi tu penses?"
Chris W.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor

According to a French native speaker, both is possible:

Qu'est-ce que tu pense. -- What are you thinking about?
À quoi tu penses. -- What are you thinking about?

According to her, they are both possible and mean exactly the same thing: asking someone what he is thinking, without reference to anything mentioned earlier.

Chris W.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor
Qu'est-ce que tu penses, of course, I forgot the "s". Wish there was some way to edit one's typos...
Paola L. asked:

Why do we say "Qu'est-ce que tu en penses ?

Qu'est-ce que tu en penses ? 

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