What Do You Do or What Are You Doing?

He writes, "I would like to know the difference between what do you do? and what are you doing? When do you use both?" - Emad
他写道：“我想知道what do you do 和 what are you doing 之间的区别，什么时候两者都能用?

Answer:
回答：

Dear Emad,
亲爱伊马德，

Those are excellent questions. One question is about a person's work or profession, and the other is about what action a person is doing at the moment, or in the near future.
这些问题都很棒。第一种问法是询问一个人的工作或职业，另一种问法是询问某人当时，或不久的将来在做什么。

Asking about a profession
询问职业

We will take the work example first.
我们首先来看询问职业。

Imagine that you meet someone at a party.
假设你在聚会上遇到某人。

The person asks you: ‘What do you do?'
这个人问你：“你做什么职业啊？”

What they mean is: ‘What do you do for a living? Or ‘What is your profession?'
他的意思是问：“你以何谋生？”或者，“你从事什么职业？”

You would answer them by stating the kind of work you do, like this: "I am a writer," or "I am a doctor" or "I drive a bus."
你可以说出你从事的工作种类来作为回复，例如：“我是作家”、“我是医生”或者“我是司机。”

Asking about activities
询问活动

Now, on to the other question.
现在我们来看另一种问法。

Maybe you get a phone call and your friend asks: "What are you doing?"
可能你正在通电话，你的朋友问：“你在干嘛？”

They are not asking what you do for a living, but what activity are you doing at that time.
他们不是在问你做什么工作，而是问你当时正在做什么。

Your answer might be something like this: "I'm reading a book. It's great!" or "I'm cooking dinner for the family."
你可能会这样回答：“我在看书，这本书太好看了。”或者，“我在给家人做饭。”

Activities during a time
一段时间内的活动

Sometimes, the question "What do you do..." may include a day or period of time. For example, someone may ask, "What do you do on weekends?" In this case, they are asking what activities you usually do on weekends. They are not asking about your profession.
有时候，“what do you do...”这个问题中可能会包含某天或者一段时间。例如有人可能会问：“你周末干嘛？”在这种情况下，他们问的是你周末通常会干嘛。他们不是在问你的职业。

Here is an example of what you might say: "I usually take things easy, go out with friends or do other activities, like exercise or go for a run."
你可能会这样回答：“我通常会放松一下，跟朋友出门玩，或者是干点其它的，像是锻炼或跑个步。”

However, when you add a time period to "What are you doing?," you are asking what activity the person is doing at a specific time in the near future.
然而，当 “What are you doing”后面加上一段时间，你就是在询问这个人在不久将来的某个特定时间将会从事的活动。

Here is an example.
举个例子。

"What are you doing after work today?"
“你今天下班后要干嘛?”

One might say: "I am thinking of going out to dinner. Do you want to come with me?"
他可能会说：“我想出去吃个晚饭。你要跟我一起去吗？”

And That's Ask a Teacher!
以上就是名师答疑节目的全部内容。