Question Formations

 

There are four basic question formations in Spanish.  Two of them have a pattern variation which can occur.  They are as follows:

 

1.         ¿Subject + verb + the rest of the phrase?

           

            Ex.:      Eng:      John works a lot?

                        Span:    ¿Juan trabaja mucho?

 

2A       ¿Verb + subject + the rest of the phrase?

           

            Ex.:      Eng:      Do you speak Spanish? 

                        Span:    ¿Hablas tú español?

 

2B       ¿Verb + the rest of the phrase + subject?

           

            Ex.:      Eng:      Does she walk everyday?

                        Span:    ¿Camina ella todos los días?

 

3A       ¿Question word + verb + subject + the rest of the phrase?

           

            Ex.:      Eng:      Where do they work now?

                        Span:    ¿Dónde trabajan ellos ahora?

 

3B       ¿Question word + verb + the rest of the phrase + subject?

           

            Ex.:      Eng:      Why does she travel to Spain?

                        Span:    ¿Por qué viaja a España ella?

 

4          Subject + verb + the rest of the phrase, + ¿tag word?

           

            Ex.:      Eng:      They are from Mexico, right?

                        Span:    Ellos son de Mexico, ¿verdad?

 

                        Eng:      You speak English, don’t you?

                        Span:    Tú hablas inglés, ¿no?

 

Remember:

 

1.  When deciding on which question form to use, choose the one which starts with the same part of speech with which your English question starts.  For example, if your question in English begins with a verb, the choose a question formation that begins with a verb.

 

2.  There is no word for “do” or “does” in Spanish unless they are the main verb.  These words simply indicate what tense to use when conjugating verbs.  This same rule applies to words like "did", "was/were", "used to", "will", "would", etc...

 

3.  To make a phrase negative, simply put “no” directly in front of the verb.

 

4.  A verb in its most basic form is called an “infinitive” and all infinitives mean “to do something”

 

5.  When a subject in a phrase is understood or clearly identifiable based on the form of the verb used, then the subject may be omitted or left out.  It is always acceptable to leave out the subject when it is: 

 

Yo        Tú        Nosotros/as