Knowing how to form questions in English is a crucial aspect of communicating effectively in the language. In this article, we will explore the different ways of forming questions in English and how to use the different types of question words.

How to Make Questions with the Verb “to Be”

The verb “to be” is used to express existence or identity and is often used in questions to find out information about someone or something. To form a question with the verb “to be,” we simply invert the subject and the verb. For example, the statement “I am a student” becomes the question “Are you a student?”

How to Make Questions with the Verb “to Do”

The verb “to do” is used in questions to express actions or activities. To form a question with the verb “to do,” we add “do” before the subject. For example, the statement “You speak English” becomes the question “Do you speak English?”

When using the verb “to do” with third-person singular subjects such as “he,” “she,” and “it,” we add “does” before the subject. Since “does” is conjugated, the action verb of the sentence does not get conjugated for the question. For example, the statement “She speaks English” becomes the question “Does she speak English?” (Notice how the verb “speaks” is not conjugated in the question.) 

How to Make Yes/No Questions

Yes/no questions are questions that can be answered with a simple “yes” or “no.” To form a yes/no question, we can simply invert the subject and the verb in a sentence and add a question tag at the end. For example, the statement “She loves ice cream” becomes the question “She loves ice cream, doesn’t she?”

Another way to form a yes/no question is to use the auxiliary verb “do” and invert the subject and the verb. For example, the statement “You like pizza” becomes the question “Do you like pizza?”

How to Use the Six Wh- Question Words

The six wh- question words are “who,” “what,” “when,” “where,” “why,” and “how.” These words are used to ask for specific information and can be used at the beginning of a question to form what are known as wh- questions.

  • “Who” is used to ask about a person. For example, “Who is she?”
  • “What” is used to ask about a thing or an idea. For example, “What is your favorite food?” or “What do you think about that?”
  • “When” is used to ask about a time. For example, “When did you graduate?”
  • “Where” is used to ask about a place. For example, “Where do you live?”
  • “Why” is used to ask about a reason. For example, “Why did you leave?”
  • “How” is used to ask about a method or process. For example, “How do you make pizza?”