Spanish question words, or interrogatives, are essential for asking precise questions about people, places, things, reasons, and manners. Unlike English, all Spanish question words carry an accent mark to distinguish them from similar non-question words, signaling their use in direct or indirect questions.
- Interrogatives specify what kind of information is being requested (who, what, where, when, why, how).
- They always have an accent mark: qué, cómo, dónde, cuándo, por qué, quién.
- Used in direct questions (¿Dónde vas? – Where are you going?) and indirect questions (No sé dónde va. – I don’t know where he goes.)
Spanish question words are used to ask for specific information.
Spanish question words are used in both direct and indirect questions.
Key Spanish Question Words
| Spanish | English | Usage | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| ¿Qué? | What? | To ask about things or information. | Can mean "What?" or "Which?" |
| ¿Quién? / ¿Quiénes? | Who? | To ask about people (quién = singular, quiénes = plural). | Used only for people. |
| ¿Dónde? | Where? | To ask about location. | |
| ¿Cuándo? | When? | To ask about time. | |
| ¿Por qué? | Why? | To ask for reason or cause. | Always two words in questions. |
| ¿Cómo? | How? | To ask about manner or condition. | |
| ¿Cuánto/a/os/as? | How much?/How many? | To ask about quantity (matches gender and number). | Used with nouns for "How many...?" |
The correct Spanish question words include Qué, Quién, Dónde, Por qué, Cómo, and Cuánto.
Examples in Context
- Qué: ¿Qué quieres? (What do you want?)
- Quién: ¿Quién llama? (Who is calling?)
- Dónde: ¿Dónde vives? (Where do you live?)
- Cuándo: ¿Cuándo es la fiesta? (When is the party?)
- Por qué: ¿Por qué estudias? (Why do you study?)
- Cómo: ¿Cómo estás? (How are you?)
- Cuánto: ¿Cuánto cuesta? (How much does it cost?)
Qué means What, Quién means Who, and Dónde means Where.
'Why?' as a question is 'Por qué'.
Usage Notes
- Question words are placed at the beginning of a question: ¿Dónde...?, ¿Qué...?
- For indirect questions, no inverted question marks are used, and the sentence continues naturally:
Direct: ¿Quién viene?
Indirect: Quiero saber quién viene.
- Cuánto changes form to agree with the noun:
¿Cuánto pan? (How much bread?)
¿Cuántos amigos? (How many friends?)
Spanish question words are placed at the beginning of direct questions.
'Cuánto' changes to cuánta, cuántos, or cuántas to match the noun's gender and number.
Spanish question words are vital for framing questions and gaining specific information in conversations. Their systematic use of accents and agreement rules helps clarify meaning and intent.
- All Spanish interrogatives have accent marks.
- They are used for asking about what, who, where, when, why, how, and how much/many.
- Proper placement and agreement ensure clear, effective questions.
Question words are essential for asking precise questions and obtaining specific information.