How to make questions

Information Questions 

Questions using question words follow two basic patterns:

Question Word + Verb + Subject

QW + V + S

Who is he?

...or

Question Word + Verb + Subject + Verb

QW + V + S + V

Where do they live?

 
 

Question Words...	...used for this information.
Who	a person
What	a thing / fact
Where	a location / place
When	time / day / year / month
Why	reason
How	method / quality

Who am I? You're a teacher.
Where are you? I'm in the classroom.
What does he have? He has some strawberries.
Where is she? She's at the beach.
Why is the cat drinking water? It's thirsty.
When do we have class? We have class in the morning.	You + I = We
How are they drinking their milkshake? They're drinking it with a straw.
What do they have? They have popsicles.

Practice:

1. ____________ are you? (location / place)

2. ____________ are those people? (people)

3. ____________ is the time? (fact / truth / information)

4. ____________ is he upset? (reason)

5. ____________ is the party? (date / time)

6. ____________ is the weather today? (quality)

7. ____________ coffee is there? (amount)

8. ____________ oranges are on the table? (amount)

(Answers: 1. Where;  2. Who;  3. What;  4. Why;  5. When;  6. How;      7. How much; 8. How many)

Question Words

This page lists all the question words that you need to know when asking a question for information.
How: method / manner / situation
Q: How do you know her? A: I know her from school. Her name is Nella.	Nella
Q: How did you figure out that problem? A: I worked it out on the blackboard.
Q: How do I get to Lake Street from here? A: Go straight and take a left.
Q: How did you make the crust for this pie? A: I used flour, shortening, salt, and ice water.
Q: How do you like your coffee? A: I like it with a little bit of cream.
How about:	Do you want to.....?
John: How about going to a movie later? (Do you want to go to a movie) Ying: Okay. What do you want to see? John: How about an action movie? Ying: No, I don't want to see that. How about a comedy instead? John: Okay.	John
	Ying
How about:	What is your opinion of ____?
Q: How about those Twins? (What do you think about the team?) A: Yeah, they're doing great this season.
How about this weather? (What's your opinion on the weather?)
How come: why
Sandra: How come you didn't call me? Javier: I was busy. or Sandra: Why didn't you call me? Javier: I was busy.	Sandra
	Javier
A: Norbert didn't show up at the party. B: How come? A: He had tickets to a basketball game.	Norbert
How far: distance / extent
Q: How far is it to the nearest town? A: It's about 20 miles.
Q: How far is it from the earth to the moon? A: It's about 240,000 miles away.
How high: height
Q: How high is that mountain A: It's about half a mile high.
How long: length
Q: How long is the ski trail? A: It's about five miles long.
Q: How long was the movie? A: It was about 90 minutes long.	film reel
Q: How long is her hair? A: It goes down to her shoulders, but she usually wears it in a pony tail.
How tall: height
Q: How tall are you, Caner? A: I'm six feet tall.	Caner
A: How tall is that building? B: It's 15 stories high.
How old: age
Q: How old are you? A: I'm 31 and she's 29.
Q: How old is your baby? A: She's nine months old.
How many: amount (count nouns)
Q: How many knives are in that knife block? A: There are ten knives.
How much: amount (noncount nouns)
Q: How much lettuce do we need to get? A: Not very much. We just need one head.
What: general information
Q: What time is it? A: It's ten minutes before two.
Q: What's that? A: It's a marshmallow.
Q: What are those? A: They're tortilla chips.
What about: consider this
Mother: What are you going to do this afternoon? Daughter: I'm going to go play basketball. Mother: What about your homework. Daughter: I'll do it later. Mother: No, you should do it now and play basketball later. Daughter: Okay.
What...for: purpose / reason
Q: What do you use this for? A: You use it for cutting the grass. It's a lawnmower.
What kind of: type / category
Q: What kind of a musical instrument is that? A: It's an accordion.
Q: What kind of fruit do you like to eat? A: I like to eat kiwi.
When: time / date
Student: When were you born? Teacher: I was born in 1963.
Where: location
Paul: Where did you go yesterday? Daniya: I went to a coffee shop to meet some friends.	Daniya
Which: choice of two or more
Q: Which do you prefer, red peppers or green peppers? A: I like them both, but I prefer red peppers because they're sweeter.
Who: subject for a person
Q: Who is she? A: Her name is Natalia. She's my classmate.	Natalia
Whom: object for a person
Q: Whom did you go fishing with last week? A: I went fishing with Michael. (Note: Although "whom" is the correct choice, many Americans use "who" instead.)	Michael
Whose: possessive form for a person
Q: Whose motorcycle is that? A: It belongs to Luiz.
Why: reason
Q: Why does she look so sad? A: Her dog died.
Why not: reason
Q: Why doesn't he hire someone to paint his house? A: He can't afford it.

 

Question Words + "have to" Because it's so common to make information questions using "have to," this lesson is on just that. The most important thing to remember is that the helping verbs and the modal verbs determine the tense. Present Tense Question: Where do you have to go today? Answer: I have to go to work. Where does he have to go today? He has to go to work. How many shirts do I have to buy to get one free? You have to buy two shirts to get one free. Past Tense Question: Why did you have to see the doctor? Answer: I had to get my blood pressure checked. How much did he have to pay for tuition? He had to pay over $3000. Why did they have to leave? They had to attend a wedding. Future Tense Question: How long will I have to take this medication? Answer: You'll have to take it until the pain goes away. When will she have to be there? She'll have to be there by 2:00. Notice that you can also use the present tense when asking about the future. How long do I have to take this medication? You have to take it until the pain goes away. When does she have to be there? She has to be there by 2:00. While "have to" is typically used for the present, past, and the future, it is occasionally used with the present perfect tense; however, sometimes it's difficult to apply "have to" when making a question in this tense. Present Perfect Tense Question: Why have they had to cut back on their spending? Answer: They've had to cut back on their spending because he lost his job. How long has he had to use a cane to get around? He's had to use a cane for the last couple of years. or... How long has he used a cane to get around? (It's not necessary in some cases to use the present perfect with "have to" when making a question.) He's had to use a cane for the last couple of years. You can also make questions with modal verbs and "have to," but aside from "will," the modal verb most commonly used is "should." Present Perfect Tense Question: Why should we have to pay our taxes if we aren't happy with the way government operates/ Answer: We should have to pay our taxes because it's the law and because the government provides essential services. Practice You're given the answer to a question. Make the question using "have to" and the question words provided. Write your answers in a notebook: 1. What time ______________________________________________? Answer: He has to get there at 8:00. 2. Why ___________________________________________________? Answer: She had to leave early because she had an appointment. 3. Where _________________________________________________? Answer: You have to sign your name on the bottom of the page. 4. How much ______________________________________________? Answer: They had to pay $100 for the tickets. 5. How long _______________________________________________? Answer: They had to stand in line for 30 minutes. 6. Who ___________________________________________________? Answer: He has to call Bernie. 7. Whom _________________________________________________? Answer: She had to meet her boyfriend at the airport. 8. When _________________________________________________? Answer: I'll have to have this finished by tomorrow. 9. How many _____________________________________________? Answer: Roger had to make 20 hamburgers. 10. Why _________________________________________________? Answer: You have to eat your vegetables because we want you to be healthy. Click here to see what the questions should look like. Question Words...	...used for this information.
Who	a person
What	a thing / fact
Where	a location / place
When	time / day / year / month
Why	reason
How	method / quality