1. What do we need to ask a question ?
- A question word (not often): Where, When, What,Why, How and the like,
- An auxiliary :
TO BE : am, are, is ( in the present); Was, were ( in the past),
TO HAVE: have, has, had ( in the past) , or
TO DO : do, does ( in the present), did ( in the past)
THE MODALS: will, would, may, can, could, shall, should, must, …
- A subject: noun or pronoun,
- A verb,
- A context and
- A question mark “ ? ”
2. Yes/No questions:
Are you ready ?
Yes, we are.
Did she see him ?
No, she didn’t.
Not that in an affirmative question, the helping
verb is not contracted with a subject.
It’s incorrect : Yes, I’m or Yes. I’ll.
3. Information question :
We ask information by using a question word :
When, why, how, where, who, what, whom, whose, which.
What time is it ? : time on a clock.
When are you going to come ? : with action.
4. Subject questions :
Who saw ?
What happened ?
Who knows ?
Who has a car ?
Who is wearing a watch ?
These kind of questions are always in singular. They are
uesd with: what & who. The question word order is not
used ( No form of do is used)
5. Object questions :
What did she see ?
Whom did she see ?
These kind of questions are always uesd
with : whtat & whom.
Object questions with prepositions:
What are you looking at?
Whom are you looking at?
Whom did you talk to?
Whom did you talk about ?
6. What + a form of DO :
It is used to ask questions about activities:
What are you doing ?
What would you like to do when you grow up ?
What do you do ? ( has a special meaning )
Another way of asking the same question is :
What do you do for a living ?
What will you do tomorrow ?
What do you want to do ?
What would you like to do ?
What will you do for this ?
7. What kind of noun , nouns … ? :
What kind of shoes do you prefer ?
What kind of books do you like best ?
What kind of books did you buy yesterday ?
What kind of car do you have ? ( not : have you ?)
What kind of food do you eat the most ( or most often ) ?
What kind of books do you want to read ?
What kind of car should I buy ?
What kind of asks for information , about a specific type
( a specific kind), in general categories.
What kind of : can be used with either singular
and plural nouns .
8. Using WHICH … ? :
Which : is used when we offer a choice, when the
speaker wants somebody to make a choice, or when
the speaker is offering alternatives.
Which book do you want? This one? or that one ?
Which books do you want? these ? or those ? ( 2 sets of books )
Which one do you want ? this or that?
Which ones do you want? These? or those ?
Which do you want ? this? or that ?
Which do you want? These? or those ?
Which can be used with either singular and plural nouns .
9. Using WHOSE … ?
Whose book is this ?
Whose is this ?
This book, it’s yours ?
Whose books are these ?
Whose are these ?
Whose books did you borrow ?
Whose asks about possession. ( we can omit the NOUN if
the meaning is clear for the listener).
10. Who&Whom:for people What&Which:for things:
Who are you ?
Who said the car can move with only three wheels ?
Whom did you meet ?
Who is this ? = Who’s this ?
Which result did you expect to find?
11. Using HOW … ?
How is often used with adjectives( old, big,…) and
Adverbs (well, quickly,…)
How old are you ?
How important was the meeting ?
How tall are you ? - 5 1/2 feet.
How heavy are you ? - 140 lbs.
How big is it ?
How sleepy are you ?
How hungry are you ?
How soon will be ready ?
How soon will dinner be ready ?
How much is it ?
How fresh are they ?
How well does she speak Arabic ?
How quickly can you get there ?
How difficult was your test ?
How fast do you drive ?
How busy are you today ?
How serious are they about becoming soldiers ?
12. Using HOW OFTEN … ?
How often = How many times ( a day, a week, a year,….)
How often asks about frequency.
How often do you go shopping ?
- Once a week, about twice, three times a week ,….
- Every other day or so
How many times a week do you go shopping ?
How many times a semester do you get your haircut ?
- A lot – occasionally – once in a while –
not very often – hardly never.
How has many uses. One use of How is to ask about means(ways)
of transportation.
13. Using HOW FAR … ? :
How far = how many ( miles , kilometers, blocks , … )
How far is used to ask questions about distance
How far is it from Mtl to NY ?
- It is about 400 miles !
How far do you live from school ?
How many blocks is it from here to school ?
How many blocks is it to school ?
- It’s six blocks
How far were you ?
14. Using How long :
How long asks for information about length of time.
How long does it take to drive from MTL to Toronto ?
How long did you study last night ?
How long will you be in Florida ?
- Two weeks.
Other ways for asking how long :
How many times ( minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years, …)
How many days did it take him to drive to Toronto ?
How long will it take her to drive from here to Detroit ?
- Four days.
How many hours does it take them to do their composition ?
- Three.
How many weeks are you going to be in the hospital ?
- Oh, It depends.
Expressing length of time :
It + take + Sb + time expression + Infinitif.
It takes me twenty minutes to read this sheet and finish composition.
It took him three days to arrive to Chicago.
It will take them seven weeks to drive from MTL to California.
(Infinitive is To + the simple form of the verb.)
15. How/what about
How/what about+ NOUN ( or Pronoun) + ING ( form of a verb)
How/what about you ? is used to ask questions that refers
to the information or question that immediately preceded.
I’m busy! How about you ?
16. What time … ? :
What time should I call you ?
What time should we meet ?
What time should we get together ?
17. Tag question :
Is added onto the end of sentence.
The speaker wants to make sure that his idea is correct,
and expects you to answer : Yes.
We can, however, answer No if you don’t think so.
I’ve my idea while asking question at the same time.
Questions : Tag questions
Negative : Affirmative
Affirmative : Negative
He is - Isn’t he ?
She can - Can’t she ?
You know – Don’t you ?
They didn’t - Did they ?
I don’t - Do I ?
18. More questions:
What is this = what’s this ?
What is an idiom ?
What does “ an idiom “ mean ?
- That means : expression !
What are “ gerunds” ?
What are “gerunds” mean ?
What makes you think that ?
What can I do to help ?
What can I do to help you get ready for the meeting ?
What would you like to know about these topics ?
What are you curious about ?
Why I thought you are from the US ?
Do you prefer to use computers ?
Would you like to have a computer ?
What do you prefer the most ?
What did you buy when you went shopping ?
Could I borrow your pen for a minute ?
- Sure, I have two ( pens ). Which one would you like ?
Which countries do you enjoy the most visiting ?
Does this book blong to you ?
Does this book belong to you ?
Is this your’s ?
Whose is it ?
Who is this ?
Is this your stuff ?
Is this stuff your’s ?
How did you get here ?
- I drove a car – I took a taxi. – I flew.
What is broken ? = What’s broken ?
Do you have time to read over this report ?
How do you spell this word ?
How do you spell “ street” ?
How do we say “chamber” in English ?
How do we say/pronounce “this word” ?
How’s it going : (Often used in greeting.)
How are you doing ?
How are you getting along ?
- Great, fine, okay, so-so
How do you feel ?
How are you feeling ?
- Terrific, wonderful, great, fine, okay, so-so
- A bit under the weather ( mal fichu), not so good,
- terrible, lousy, awful.
How do you do !. – How do you do !
Whose turn is this ? = whose turn ?
Who’s that ?
– Bill ! ( himself)
Whose that ?
– Bill’s. ( his watch). It’s Bill’s.
Whose hair is longer ?
–Bill’s.
Who’s on the phone ?
Are these your books ?
Are these your’s ?
Whose are these books ?
Whose are these ? Whose are they ?
Are those Bill’s ?
Let’s speak quickly and use the street language:
Wanna = want to
Whaddaya = what do you
Hasta = has to
Hafta = have to
Gonna = got to
Dono = don't know
Ain't = am not
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