If you are learning the French language, then understanding the question words in French is most crucial. But why? It is because if you are learning a new language, then at least you should be capable of asking questions; otherwise, you will fail to start a conversation.
However, you don’t need to worry about it, as you are in the right place. This blog will guide you on how to ask questions using French words by explaining the key question words in French. Additionally, it will help to identify how you can form questions using these words.
Table of Contents
Let's start by understanding what French question words are. These question words are used to ask and form specific types of questions. These words enable you to collect precise data, whether it is about any place, person, manner, reason or time.
Essentially, by using these question words, you can transform a direct statement into a query, which seeks more information than a basic "yes" or "no". A few French words, you can use to frame questions are mentioned below.
The French interrogatives are used to frame and ask questions. The most commonly used words are explained in detail below. It will also help you identify how to pronounce these question words in French.
The word "Qui" is pronounced as "Ki", which translates to the word "who". It is primarily used to ask something about individuals, either as the object or subject of any sentence. "Qui" is further used with prepositions in French, such as "de" (meaning "of") and "avec" (meaning "with"), to make the question more complicated. For example:
You can use this word to ask "where" to indicate a place by pronouncing it like Ooh. This interrogative word can be used at the beginning or the end of any question. Moreover, you can also use it outside of a query to say "where", such as "the park where I play" – le parc où je joue. Now see a few examples of Où below:
The question term "whose" is often interpreted as "à qui" in French question words, corresponding to the interrogation words "who" or "whom" in English, specifically "Qui". Further, it is utilised to convey queries about possession or ownership. For example:
Quand is pronounced as kahn, which is utilised to ask "when" in the French language. It is among the frequently used question words in French, which enables you to inquire about time. Moreover, 'quand' can be placed with "est-ce que" (is it that) to ask a formal question. For instance:
Que is one of the most frequently used question words in French, and it is pronounced as "Keuh". It is also an interrogative pronoun which used to ask questions about an object. You can use que just like you use what in the English language. You can read the below examples to understand the use of que in a better way.
In French, 'quel", "quelle", "quells", or "quelles" are translated to "which" or "who". They are used and changed according to the gender or number of nouns to which they refer or denote.
Moreover, to refer to masculine singular nouns, you can use quel for masculine plural quels, quelles for feminine plural nouns and quelle for feminine singular nouns. Now take a glance at the examples below:
Comment is utilised to inquire about the method, way or manner of doing a specific thing. You can pronounce this word like "kum-ahn". Moreover, you can also utilise the usual questions about how something occurred or how something is. Below are a few examples of "comment" usage in French:
" Pourquoi" is used to show French questions; the word "why" asks about the reasons behind an event or its causes. Further, the word is pronounced like "poor-kwah" by the natives. Moreover, you should begin the answer with "parce que" (because) while responding to the questions that start with Pourquoi.
Now, see the examples to understand question formation by using this interrogative word.
Quoi is usually another form of "what", but it is placed after a preposition and pronounced as Kwah. However, que appears at the beginning of a question if it is used to form an interrogative question. In short, you can think of it as what you do when you are making casual sentences. Such as
À quoi translates to "to what" or "of what", and it is mainly used to inquire about the use, reference or purpose of something, specifically when verbs need the preposition "à". Moreover, it is pronounced as "ah ki". Below are a few examples of using à quoi in an interrogative sentence.
The question word Combien is used to ask "how many" or "how much". You can use this word while questioning about prices, measurements or quantities. This word is followed by "de" when you use it before any noun. For instance:
Lequel, laquelle, lesquels, and lesquelles are question words in French, which translate to "which ones" or "which one" interrogative pronouns in English. These words are used to question a particular object from a group that has been mentioned previously.
Moreover, the number and gender play a key role in deciding which form you should use in the sentence. Here are a few examples of using these Frenchquestion words within an interrogative phrase.
Also Read- Verbs in French
Now that you have learned all the crucial question words in French, let’s understand how you can use them to frame a correct grammatical sentence. It is important because there are numerous ways of asking questions in this language.
One of the simplest ways of asking questions is to add the word est-ce que to the question words in French. There are chances that you may find this complex because there is no English translation of these words. It only indicates “Is it that?” but it possesses the ability to turn a normal sentence into a question.
For example:
The one thing you should notice is that these sentences may be confusing, but they can feel normal once you see them in action.
Intonation enables individuals to ask questions, just as we do in casual English, by using a question mark or by changing their tone. However, you can use this format to ask casual questions while communicating with someone. Also, using the intonation, you can easily pose a question formally without using question words in French within a sentence.
For example:
If you want to learn about how to ask questions formally, then inversion can be the perfect thing for you. The sentence is framed simply by starting the phrase by using a question term, then inverting word direction in such a way that you use it to frame a sentence.
Moreover, they work like all the common ways of asking English questions, making it quite easier for people who speak English to master the language.
For instance:
Summing up, the above information about question words in French can offer you a great way to learn the French language. Learning these 12 interrogative words can help you to initiate communication with the people of France. Additionally, these basics are crucial before you start practising the complex words of the French language. However, if this information feels overwhelming, then connect with our experts at Gradding.com. We will help you make your language learning easy and fun at the same time. Connect Now!
You can form the questions in three different ways in the French language:
The most effective and commonly used French question words are que/qu'est-ce que/quoi (what), qui (who), où (where), comment (how), quand (when), combien (how much/many), and Pourquoi (why).
Est-ce que is a unique French term which doesn’t indicate anything. However, it is a way to turn a normal sentence into a question.
You can ask this question by saying “Comment allez-vous? in formal or Comment vas-tu? In informal conversation.
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