Types of questions in English. Types of Questions Types of questions in English Difficult questions in English

Special questions in English are very common and are used regularly. It is necessary to study specific cases of their use and individual varieties, the scheme of formation and nuances.

Special questions are posed in order to obtain specific information about a phenomenon or object. A specific feature of such questions in English is the presence of interrogative words. How to ask questions in English is described here. When forming a special question, the general question serves as the basis. To make it special, it is enough to supplement the question with a question word, which is placed at the beginning of the sentence.

Did they visit the exhibition? - Did they visit the exhibition?

When did they visit the exhibition? - When did they visit the exhibition?

In this case, the auxiliary verb must be placed before the noun, and after it the semantic verb is placed.

The general scheme for the formation of a special question is as follows:

question word + auxiliary verb + subject + predicate + other members of the sentence.

What is she writing? - What does she write?

A special question can be put to different members of the sentence. Due to this, we can get information about what specifically interests us.

A separate category is questions with who in English, like questions with what. This type of questions stands out in the general mass. Its peculiarity is the absence of auxiliary verbs in the formation of special questions to the subject. It's simple - just replace the subject with who or what, adding also an interrogative intonation. In general, the scheme for forming a question to the subject looks like this: interrogative word + predicate + other members of the sentence.

Who has built this bridge? - Who built this bridge?

Questions with what in English, as well as questions with who, can be put to the addition - a member of the sentence, which allows you to get additional information and answers the following questions: whom? what? to whom? what? what? The word who or what is placed at the beginning of the sentence.

They are waiting for the taxi. - They are waiting for a taxi.

What are they waiting for? - What are they waiting for?

She read a new book at the library. She read a new book in the library.

What did she read at the library? What did she read in the library?

The question "what is it?" with the corresponding interrogative word what is given in relation to an inanimate subject or object. When it comes to a person, the question “who is this?” applies. with the question word who?

What did he write? - What he wrote?

What is she? - Who is she? (by profession)

The interrogative word what can also be part of interrogative phrases. Their list is given below.

What is he doing for a living? - What does he do for a living?

An auxiliary verb in a special question in English is not needed in all cases. If the sentence is composed using the semantic verb to be, you can ask a question by changing the places of the subject and predicate.

Last Sunday she was at home. She was at home last Sunday.

Where was she last Sunday? - Where was she last Sunday?

In the presence of a modal verb, there is also no need to use an auxiliary. The question is formed by rearranging the subject and the predicate.

They can meet at the bus stop. - They can meet at the bus stop.

Where can they meet? - Where can they meet?

The given examples clearly show how to ask questions in English.

According to the purpose of the utterance in English, three main types of sentences can be distinguished: declarative (declarative sentences), interrogative (interrogative sentences) and imperative (imperative sentences). In this case, we are interested in interrogative sentences. The types of questions in English are as follows: general, alternative, question to the subject, special and disjunctive. Each type has its own characteristics, so we will consider each of them separately.

1. General Question

A general question is asked to the entire sentence as a whole. You can answer it either "yes" or "no". That is why general questions in English are also called yes / no questions. Here the word order is reversed. The first place should be the auxiliary verb (Auxiliary Verb), then the subject (Subject), predicate (Predicate) and other members of the sentence.

For a grammatically correct statement of the question, the auxiliary verb do (does) is required, in the Past Simple - did. If the sentence uses the verb to be or (with the exception of have to and need to) as a predicate, then they will act as auxiliary. Examples:

• Does James smoke? Does James smoke?
• Are you living in London now? — Do you live in London now?
• I have a look at your photos? - Can I see your photos?

Brief answers to general questions depend entirely on the auxiliary verb used. If the question begins with the verb does, then it should also sound in the answer. For example:

• Does she like English poetry? — Yes, she does. Does she like English poetry? - Yes.
• Is Ann playing the piano? — No, she isn't. Does Anna play the piano? - Not.

2. Alternative question (Alternative Question)

An alternative question in English involves a choice. It always contains the union or (or). The construction of this question is similar to the general one, but here a choice clause is also added. Compare:

• Do you want to go to Warsaw by car? — Do you want to go to Warsaw by car?
• Do you want to go to Warsaw by car or by train?— Do you want to go to Warsaw by car or by train?

• Is Kate going to buy shoes? Is Katya going to buy shoes?
• Is Kate going to buy shoes or high boots? Is Katya going to buy shoes or boots?

3. Question to the subject (Subject Question)

When posing a question to the subject, the direct word order in the sentence does not change. Just use the appropriate question word instead of the subject. Usually used Who (who), What (what). It should be noted that in the Present Simple tense, the verb will be used in the third person, singular. Examples:

• Who lives in that old house? Who lives in that old house?
• Who will post this letter? Who will send?
• What caused the explosion? - What caused the explosion?

4. Special Question

Special questions in English are used to request specific information. They begin with the question words Who (who), What (what), Which (which), When (when), Where (where, where), Why (why), How (how), How many / How much (how much) . The word order after the interrogative word remains the same as in the general question, you just need to remove the part of the sentence to which the question is asked. For example:

• What does Jane do on Sundays? What does Jane do on Sundays?
• Why are you sitting at my desk? Why are you sitting at my desk?
• When did he borrow your car? When did he take your car?
• How many pictures have they bought? How many paintings did they buy?

In English, phrasal verbs are common, that is, the sentence contains a preposition that is closely related to the main verb. When posing a special question, this preposition is used at the very end of the sentence. For example:

• What are you busy with? - What are you doing?
• Who was Jack waiting for? Who was Jack waiting for?

5. Disjunctive Question.

Disjunctive questions in English are an affirmative or negative declarative sentence, to which a short general question, often referred to as a "tail" (tag), is attached. This type of question is used to express surprise, doubt, confirmation of what has been said. The “tail” itself is translated into Russian as “isn’t it”, “isn’t it”.

When posing a question, the first part remains unchanged, in the second part an auxiliary verb is placed at the beginning (depends on the predicate in the first part), and then comes the pronoun in the nominative. If the sentence is affirmative, then the “tail” must be made negative and vice versa. Examples:

• you heard from him, didn't you? You have heard from him, haven't you?
• Alex is a driver, isn't he? Alex is the driver, isn't he?
• That isn't tom is it? It's Tom, isn't it?
• Ann hasn't got color TV set has vshe? Anya doesn't have a color TV, does she?

Considering this type of question, it should be noted that tag questions in English have several nuances that are important to remember.
1. I am the first part requires a question aren't I.

• I'm so exhausted, aren't I? "I'm so tired of everything, aren't I?"

2. If the first part starts with let's, then in the second part we use the question shall we.

• Let's visit our grandparents, shall we? Let's visit our grandparents, okay?

3. If the pronouns anyone, anybody, nobody, none, neither, everybody, everyone, somebody, someone are used as the subject in the sentence, then the pronoun is put in the second part they. For example:

• Neither of them prepared for the lesson, did they? None of them prepared for the lesson, did they?
• Someone had seen him, hadn't they? Someone saw him, didn't they?
• Everyone liked your story, didn't they? Everyone liked your story, right?

There are 5 types of questions in English. Mastering them will not be difficult if you know the word order in declarative sentences and can ask general questions to them.

"Were you at work today? Have you fed the cat? May I take your pen? She's a student?" - every day we ask hundreds of such questions to our friends, colleagues and family members.

In English, these questions are called general questions, because with the help of them we learn general information about a person / object. I will tell you how to properly construct such questions so that you yourself can learn how to ask them.

In the article you will learn:

• What are general questions

What are common questions in English?

A general question is asked to find out general information. Hence the name itself - general".

For example: Are you going to the cinema?
(We do not specify when and where, we will find out general information)

Such a question requires an answer Yes" or " No". Therefore, sometimes such a question is called not a general question, but a yes / no question.

Attention: Confused by the English rules? Find out how easy it is to understand English grammar.

How to ask a general question in English?

Let's look at three options for the formation of a general question.

1. Forming a general question using auxiliary verbs

Auxiliary verbs are words that are not translated, but only act as pointers. They help us determine:

• Time of what is happening (present, future, past);
• Number of actors (many or one).

Read more about auxiliary verbs in this article.

Each tense in English has its own auxiliary verb (do/does, have/has, did, had, will). Let's look at the auxiliary verbs of the three most used tenses.

1. Present simple tense (Present Simple Tense):

• does when we talk about someone in the singular (he, she, it)
• do, for all other cases (I, you, we, they)

2. Past simple tense (Past Simple Tense): did

3. Future Simple Tense: will

To form a question, we put the auxiliary verb first in the sentence.

The scheme for the formation of a general question will be as follows:

Auxiliary verb + actor + action being performed

For example, we have affirmative sentences:

They go to school.
They go to school.

They went to school.
They went to school.

They will go to school.
They will go to school.

To ask a question, we put the auxiliary verbs do, did, will in the first place:

Do they go to school?
They go to school?

Did they go to school?
Did they go to school?

Will they go to school?
Will they go to school?

Let's look at a few more examples.

You can learn more about the formation of questions during the times of the Simple group here:

2. Formation of a general question in sentences with the verb to be

Also in English there is a special kind of verb - verb to be. We use it when we say that someone:

• Is somewhere (He's in the park)
• Is someone (She's a nurse)
• Is somehow (Grey cat)

Depending on the time in which we use this verb, it changes its form:

• Present tense - am, are, is
• Past tense - was, were
• In the future tense - will be

If the sentence contains the verb to be, then the general question is built according to the following scheme:

Verb to be + character + place / state / phenomenon

To ask a question, we need to put in a sentence verb to be first. For example, we have affirmative sentences:

He is a doctor.
He is a doctor.

He was a doctor.
He was a doctor.

He will be a doctor.
He will be a doctor.

they were doctors.
They were doctors.

We move is, was, will to the first place and get the question:

Is he a doctor?
He is a doctor?

was he a doctor?
Was he a doctor?

Will he be a doctor?
Will he be a doctor?

Were they doctors?
Were they doctors?

Here are some more examples:

Read more about the verb to be in each tense in the following articles:

3. Formation of a general question with modal verbs

There are verbs in English that do not indicate an action (go, read, study), but show an attitude towards these actions (I must go, I can read, I should study):

• can/could - I can
• must - must
• may/might - I can
• should - follows, etc.

Sentences containing words like thisdo not require an auxiliary verb(do/does, did, will, etc.). To form a questionwe just move the modal verb to the first place in the sentence.

The question formation scheme will be as follows:

Modal verb + actor + action being performed

For example, take the affirmative sentence :

When asked can, should, may transferin first place:

Here are some more examples.

You can read more about modal verbs in this article:

Answers to common questions in English

The answer to a general question might be:

• positive (yes)
• negative (no)

It can also be:

• complete
• short

short positive The response is structured as follows:

Yes + actor + auxiliary verb/modal verb/verb to be

Suggestion examples:

Did he wash his car? Yes, he did.
Did he wash his car? Yes.

Does she like sweets? Yes, she does.
Does she like sweets? Yes.

Is she's a doctor? Yes, she is.
She is a doctor? Yes.

Can you open a window? Yes, I can.
Can you open the window? Yes.

At negative short answer the particle not is added to auxiliary verbs. The construction scheme will be as follows:

No + character + auxiliary verb/modal verb/verb to be + not

Did he wash his car? No, he did not.

Did he wash his car? No.

Does she like sweets? No, she does not.
Does she like sweets? Yes.

Is she's a doctor? No, she is not.
She is a doctor? No.

Can you open a window? no, I can't.
Can you open the window? No.

Full positive response looks like an affirmative sentence, only at the beginning of the sentence we put yes:

Did he wash his car? Yes, he washed his car.
Did he wash his car? Yes, he washed the car.

Does she like sweets? Yes, she likes sweets.
Does she like sweets? Yes, she loves sweets.

Is she's a doctor? Yes, she is a doctor.
She is a doctor? Yes, she is a doctor.

Can you open a window? Yes, I can open a window.
Can you open the window? Yes, I can open the window.

Full negative answer looks like a negative sentence, only at the beginning of the sentence we put no:

Did he wash his car? No, he didn't wash his car.
Did he wash his car? No, he didn't wash the car.

Does she like sweets? No, she doesn't like sweets.
Does she like sweets? No, she doesn't like sweets.

Is she's a doctor? No, she is not a doctor.
She is a doctor? No, she's not a doctor.

Can you open a window? no, I can't open a window.
Can you open the window? No, I can't open the window.

So, we have analyzed the whole theory concerning general issues. Now let's move on to practice.

Reinforcement task

Translate the following questions into English:

1. Did you go to school?
2. Is she in the park?
3. Can you turn off the music?
4. Are they smart?
5. Does she like roses?
6. Should I call him?
7. Should she do it?
8. Will we help him?

Leave your answers in the comments below the article.

Interrogative sentence(interrogative sentence) - a sentence that is used to ask a specific question. Questions in English are characterized by indirect word order and interrogative intonation. Interrogative sentences always end with a question mark.

• Do you compose music? – Do you compose music?
• What are Lilly and Ann doing here? – What are they doing here?
• Who gave you this book? – Who gave you this book?

In English, according to the nature of the question, they distinguish general, special, alternative and separating questions. Also allocate negative questions as a special kind of interrogative sentences.

General issues

general question(general question) - a question that can be answered " Yes" or " No". The general question is formed using inversion: auxiliaries and most modals ( can, could, may, might, must, should, ought) verbs are placed before the subject at the beginning of the sentence.

• May I stay?– May I stay?
• Did you go to Mark's party yesterday? Did you go to Mark's party yesterday?
• Should we help this old lady?“Are we supposed to help this old lady?”

The choice of the auxiliary verb depends on the grammatical tense in the sentence.

• Do you play the piano?- Do you play the piano? (Present Simple)
• Are Kate and Jack working now? Are Kate and Jack working now? (Present Continuous)
• Have they already finished their project? Have they completed their project yet? (Present Perfect)
• Will you be free tomorrow morning? Will you be free tomorrow morning? (Future Simple)

• Shouldn't you go to school now?- Shouldn't you be going to school now?
• Aren't you tired?- Are you tired?

• Haven't you a friend in England?
• Don't you have a friend in England?– Do you have a friend in England?

Negative questions can take two forms: abbreviated and complete forms.

Full form used in formal and official speech. In the full form of the negative question, the particle not is always placed after the subject and not in front of him.

• Have you not a friend in England?"Don't you have a friend in England?"
• Are you not tired?- Are you tired?
• Am I not right?- I'm wrong?

Short form used in everyday informal speech and is considered more common. Abbreviated questions use abbreviation forms auxiliary or modal verbs with a particle not. If the subject is expressed by a pronoun I, then the question uses the auxiliary aren't(since there is no shorthand for am not).

• Won't you go with us?- Won't you come with us?
• Doesn't he know Kate? Does he know Kate?
• Aren't I right?- I'm wrong?

negative questions often used to express polite request or invitations. In this sense, questions often begin with Won't you...?, Wouldn't you...?, Why don't you...? and so on.

• Won't you both have dinner with us?“Would you two like to have lunch with us?” (Won't you two have lunch with us?)
• Why don't you stay here? It's pretty late to go back."Why don't you stay here?" It's too late to go back.

negative questions can be used, as already mentioned, to express doubt and surprise, or to convey two opposite meanings: 1) to confirm positive information already known to the speaker, 2) to confirm already known negative information. The meaning of negative questions can be understood from the context, and the answers to such questions will depend on this. However, in order not to get confused in the answers (whether to answer " Yes or answer No” to negation), the answer should use the same auxiliary or modal verb as in the question, and not just answers “ yes" or " no».

• Aren't you cold?- Are you cold?
• Yes, I am .- Yes, it's cold.
• no, I "m not .- No, I'm not cold.

• Haven't you already done all your work? Haven't you done all your work yet?
• Yes, I have.- Yes, I did it.
• no, I haven"t .- No, he didn't.

Answers on questions

The interrogative sentence and the answer to it are always interconnected: the form of the answer is determined by the question itself and its type. The answer uses the same grammatical tense, which is in the question.

If this general or separated question, then it requires a negative or positive answer. Often in a short answer only auxiliary or modal verb without meaning.

• Did you like this book? – Did you like this book?
• Yes, I did.- Yes, I like.

• Do you read newspapers? - Do you read newspapers?
• Yeah, I do.- Yeah, I'm reading.

• Are you hungry? - Are you hungry?
• No, I'm not.- No, I'm not hungry.

• Kate doesn't want to go with us, does she? Kate doesn't want to come with us, does she?
• No, I don't think she wants. No, I don't think she wants to.

If this special or alternative question, then in the answer it is necessary to give specific information about what is being asked.

• Who was that?- Who was that?
• It was me.- It was me.

• Where do your friends live?– Where do they live?
• They live in this small house. They live in this little house.

• Did you watch this movie yesterday or on Sunday? Did you watch this movie yesterday or on Sunday?
• I watched it on Sunday.- I watched it on Sunday.

Being able to compose questions in English is an important aspect in learning the language. This theme seems simple and easy, but some nuances stand out. How to deal with them and learn how to correctly compose questions in English, you will learn in this article.

Stages of writing questions in English

For grammatically correct compilation of questions in this foreign language, they created a clear, and most importantly, simple scheme:

1. Find a verb in a sentence and understand what it is(basic, modal or to be).
2. Correct tense of this verb(requires knowledge of times).
3. Applying the Question Rule(the same for almost all types) - either rearranging the verb to the first place, or using an auxiliary verb.

General formula: interrogative word + auxiliary verb + subject + predicate + other members of the sentence?

Example:

• A cat likes milk.- The cat loves milk. (affirmative sentence).
• Does a cat like milk? Does the cat like milk? (interrogative sentence).

Compiling questions requires knowledge of verb tenses, modal verbs, and equivalents.

5 types of questions in English

There are five types of questions in English:

• General;
• Alternative;
• separating;
• Special;
• Question to the subject.

General issues

This is an easy type of question, which implies only the answer "yes" or "no" (you can not answer in detail).

Formula:

As you can see, these questions only require a “yes” or “no” answer.

Past tense

General questions of the past tense are made according to the standard formula, but with some changes.

To formulate questions in the usual Past Simple requires the use of an auxiliary verb did.

Formula:

Note! The auxiliary verb did is the same for both singular and plural. When using the verb did, the semantic verb is used without an ending.

Examples:

• Did you play chess a day ago? Did you play chess a day ago?
• Did Mary go to school last week? Did Mary go to school last week?
• Did Nick and Jim go to the same gym? Did Nick and Jim go to the same gym?
• Did you like her?- Did you love her?
• Did your teacher give you a nice present? Did your teacher give you a cute present?

The answer to this question:

• Positive - Yes, I did.
• Negative - No, I did not (didn`t) .

To build a question in other more complex past tenses, you should use the so-called reverse order (word permutation).

Formula:

Note! The verb was is put with I, he, she, it, and the verb were with you, we, they.

Examples:

• Was she fixing breakfast at five o`clock? Was she preparing breakfast at five o'clock?
• Had you done your homework before your mother came? Did you do your homework before your mom came?
• Had John been reading a big book before his friends came? Was John reading a big book before his friends came?
• Were they drawing yesterday? Did they draw yesterday?
• Had Mrs. Rose written a book before she met her husband? Did Mrs. Rose write the book before she met her husband?

Short answers to such questions should be written as follows:

• Positive - Yes, I was / they were, negative - No, I was not (wasn`t) / they were not (weren`t).
• Positive - Yes, I had, negative - No, I had not (hadn`t) .
• Positive - Yes, I had, negative - No, I had not (hadn`t) .

present tense

General questions in the present tense are formed according to the general formula, but with some exceptions.

To make a question, use the present auxiliary verb Do/Does.

Formula:

Note! The auxiliary verb does is put with the singular - he, she, it, and do with the plural - you, they, we. When using the verb does, the semantic verb is put without an ending.

Examples:

• Does my mother teach children? Does my mother teach children?
• Do we play tennis every week? Do we play tennis every week?
• Does he speak English very well?– Did he speak English well?
• Do we start to work at 9?– We start at 9?
• Does he hate cooking? Does he hate cooking?

A short answer to such a question is formed as follows:

• Positive - Yes, I do / she does.
• Negative - No, I do not (don't) / she does not (doesn't).

To make up questions with other more complex present tenses, use the so-called permutation of words.

Formula for Present Continuous Tense:

Note! The verb is is used with the singular - he, she, it, and are with the plural - you, we, they. With the pronoun I, am is used. The verb has is used with the singular - he, she, it, and the verb have with the plural - you, we, they, I.

Examples:

Brief answers to such questions are given as follows:

• Positive - Yes, I am / he is / they are, negative - No, I am not/ he is not (isn't)/ they are not (aren't).
• Positive - Yes, she has / they have, negative - No, she has not (hasn't) / they have not (haven't).

Questions with modal verbs

To compose questions with modal verbs, remember all the rules listed above, because the same scheme works here with the reverse word order.

Formula:

Examples:

• May I come in the room?– May I enter the room?
• Can I borrow your blue pen? Can I borrow your blue pen?
• Do you have to wear a uniform? Are you forced to wear a uniform?
• Can I go out tomorrow?– Can I go outside tomorrow?
• Should Mary do this right?– Should Mary do it right?

Brief answers to such questions are as follows:

• Positive - Yes, I can.
• Negative - No, I cannot (can`t) .

Note! Modal verb have to - Yes, I do / No, I do not (don`t).

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Alternative questions

Alternative questions are used in order for the respondent to choose one of the two. For this, the union is used or(or).

Example:

• Do you like books or comics? Do you like books or comics?

The answer to the alternative question should be composed only in expanded form.

Example:

• Did you buy a new blouse or a new shirt?– I bought a new blouse. (Did you buy a new blouse or shirt? - I bought a new blouse).

In order to compose this type of questions, a general formula is used.

General formula: auxiliary verb + subject + semantic verb + first alternative + or + second alternative?

Note! Sometimes, instead of the second alternative, you can use the particle not: Do they drive me mad or not? Are they driving me crazy or not?

Alternative questions are of different types, which are aimed at different parts of the sentence.

Question to the subject

The question to the subject is used if we want to know who or what performs an action.

Formula: auxiliary verb + subject (first alternative or second alternative) + semantic verb + object?

Examples:

• Does your sister or brother prefer coffee?– Does your sister or your brother prefer coffee?
• Did you or Frank go to the shop? Did you or Frank go shopping?
• Was a car or a bike bought last week? Was the car or bike bought last week?
• Does your parents or grandparents have this old car?– Do your parents or grandparents own this old car?
• Do you or they like this kind of sweet? Do you or they like this kind of candy?

Question to the predicate

We ask an alternative question to the predicate when we want to know what exactly someone or something did.

Formula: auxiliary verb + subject + semantic verb (first alternative or second alternative) + object (other members of the sentence)?

Examples:

• Did you hear this or see this? Did you hear it or see it?
• Do you hate or love her? Do you love or hate her?
• Did she buy this coat or steal it? Did she buy this coat or did she steal it?
• Did our teacher say this or write this? Did our teacher say it or write it?
• Did you kiss or hit your boyfriend last week? Did you kiss or hit your boyfriend last week?

The answer to this question needs to be detailed.

Question for addition

We ask an alternative question to an addition when we want to know about additional information.

Formula: auxiliary verb + subject + semantic verb + definition (first alternative or second alternative) + object?

Examples:

• Do you prefer driving a car or a bike? Do you prefer to drive a car or a bike?
• Did you choose Alice or Mary? Did you choose Alice or Mary?
• Have you ever heard about me or my best friends? Have you ever heard of me or my friends?
• Do you like math or biology? Do you like math or biology?
• Has she written these books or those poems? Did she write these books or those poems?

Such questions should only be answered in detail.

question for definition

We ask alternative definition questions when we want to know about the quality of an object or creature.

Formula: auxiliary verb + subject + semantic verb + definition (first alternative or second alternative) + other members of the sentence?

Examples:

• Is this car blue or orange? Is this car blue or orange?
• Do you prefer colorful books or black-and-white? Do you prefer color books or black and white?
• Is a cat brown or black? Is this cat brown or black?
• Were her hair blonde or red? Was her hair blond or red?
• Are they looking kind or angry? Do they look good or evil?

The answer to this question needs to be detailed.

Question about the circumstance of the place

We ask an alternative question to the circumstance of place in order to find out the location.

Formula: auxiliary verb + subject + semantic verb + object + adverb of place (first alternative or second alternative)?

Examples:

• Are they in the shop or at home? Are they in the store or at home?
• Did you swim in the river or in the lake? Did you swim in the river or in the lake?
• Have you ever been to London or Paris? Have you ever been to London or Paris?
• Did you kiss for the first time in the park or at school party?- Did you kiss for the first time in the park or at the school disco?
• Will you meet me at the bus stop or near the market? Will you meet me at the bus stop or near the market?

Question about the circumstance of time

We use alternative questions to the circumstance of time when we want to find out in what period of time something happens.

Formula: auxiliary verb + subject + semantic verb + object + adverbial tense (first alternative or second alternative)?

Examples:

• Does she always cook breakfast at 8 o`clock or 9 o`clock? Does she always cook tomorrow at eight o'clock or at nine?
• Do you play games in the morning or in the evening? Do you play games in the morning or in the evening?
• Does he like training in the ending of the week or in the beginning? Does he like to train at the end of the week or at the beginning?
• Have you been learning Korean all your life or all your school days?– Do you study Korean all your life or during your school days?

The answer to this question needs to be detailed.

Special questions

Special questions are used to learn more about a particular part. Based on this, they are not assigned to the entire sentence, as general, but to its separate part.

Formula:

To make questions of this type, you should use special words:

Note! If the words Who and What are subjects in the sentence, then this is a different type of question that does not apply to this table.

Examples:

Answers to these questions should be written in expanded form:

• What have you found in our garden? – I have found a beautiful bird.(What did you find in our garden? - I found a beautiful bird).

Question to the subject and its definition

We ask alternative subject questions to find out who or what in a sentence is the subject. Only two words are used for this purpose who and what.

Formula:

Note! In this type of questions, the words Who and What are put in place of the subject, and the word order in the sentence remains unchanged.

Examples:

• Who has written this book in 1855? Who wrote this book in 1855?
• Who is swimming in the river at that moment? Who is swimming in the river at the moment?
• Who has any pets at home? Who has pets at home?
• Who will get a nice present for birthday? Who will get a wonderful birthday present?
• What happened last night when you came home? What happened last night when you came home?
• Who wants to get higher education? Who wants to get higher education?

Sometimes these questions you can specify a definition that is tied to the subject. For this, words such as what (meaning what), whose, how many (much) and others.

Examples:

• Whose dog is sleeping near my armchair? Whose dog is sleeping next to my chair?
• What weather will be tomorrow evening?- What will the weather be like tomorrow night?
• How many books and dictionaries were read by this little boy? How many books and dictionaries did this little boy read?
• Whose newspapers and notebooks are laying on the desk? Whose newspapers and notebooks are on the table?
• How much cream was eaten by our mates? How much cream was eaten by our comrades?

The answer to such a question should be detailed.

Separation questions

Separation questions are a special kind of questions consisting of two interrelated parts. The first part is a regular sentence built according to the time used, and the second part is the so-called "tail" or "tag". This “tail” is translated into Russian as “isn’t it?”.

Formula in the table:

Note:

• The "tail" is always opposite in meaning to the main sentence. That is, if the main part is positive, then the "end" is negative.
• The tail is built using an auxiliary / modal verb and a pronoun that will replace the subject.

Examples:

A short answer to the question will do, for example:

• We go home at 9 o'clock, don't we? Yes, we do. We go home at 9, right? - Yes, let's go.

Exercises

Assignment on the topic of dividing questions.

Exercises on general and alternative questions.

Exercises for special questions.

Conclusion

Being able to correctly and competently ask questions in English is important for knowing this language. This topic seems easy, so students do not pay enough attention to the construction of questions, which is a mistake. Indeed, in order to learn how to correctly compose questions, you need to know the rules of grammar (verb tenses, interrogative pronouns and words, modal verbs) and intonation.

To quickly master this topic and develop the use of questions in speech, you need to practice as much as possible (for example, do exercises online) and not give up halfway through. Only this will help to overcome this difficult section of grammar.

Good luck learning English!