It's hard to imagine everyday life without the questions you ask people. In Russian, just asking a question is enough. But how to ask questions in English? At this stage, many people who are just starting to learn the language are faced with difficulties. The article will talk about questions in the English language and examples of their use. This information will help to understand the structure and subtleties of compiling such proposals.
There are several types of questions in English. Below, each question will be considered separately.
General question
If you need to know general information, then you ask a general question. “Do you like flowers?”, “Will you come tomorrow?”. In other words, you do not specify the time, place, etc. The answer implies either consent or disagreement.
Question structure
A general question in English can be constructed using the auxiliary verb or the assistant verb. Such verbs have no Russian analogue, that is, they are not translated. But they are quite significant in English. They serve as a kind of temporary pointers, helping to determine the time (present, future and past) and the number of persons (one or more).
In order to grammatically correctly ask a question in English, you need to follow a clear word order:
- Assistant verb.
- A person who commits an action.
- The action itself.
How to answer a question?
The answer to the question can be a short yes or no. The response scheme is sufficiently cloned:
The answer is yes: Yes + the person who performs the action + auxiliary verb.
The answer is negative (when expressing negation, the particle not is added to the helper verb): No + the person who performs the action + helper verb + particle not.
Examples:
1.- Do you sing songs?
- Yes, I do.
-Do you sing songs?
- Yes.
2. - Does he swim every day?
- No, he does not.
- Does he swim every day?
- Not.
3. - Will Tom go to the club tomorrow?
-Yes, he will.
“Will Tom go to the club tomorrow?”
- Yes.
Special issue
If you aim to get specific information, then a special question is used. "Where are you going to fly this fall?" To answer such a question, you need to give the interlocutor a complete and detailed answer.
Question structure
In its structure, it is similar to the structure of the general question, but at the beginning a question word is added. For example, what (what, what), when (when), where (where, where), who (who), why (why).
The structure of the question is as follows:
- Interrogative word.
- Assistant Verb
- The person committing the action.
- The action itself.
But there is a small nuance in constructing a special issue: there are some indivisible structures that are put at the beginning of the question. For example, how much (how much), how old (how old), what time (how much time).
Examples:
How often do you eat? “How often do you eat?”
What color is your skirt? - What color is your skirt?
How ald are you? - How old are you?
How to answer a question?
There is no clear cliche to answer this question. You must give the person the information that the interlocutor asks of him. The only thing that does not change in the answer is the time at which the question was asked.
Examples:
1. - Where can we meet?
- We can meet in the park.
- Where can we meet?
- We can meet in the park.
2. - What will you do tomorrow?
- I will read my new book.
- What will you do tomorrow?
- I will read my new book.
3. - Why isn't she at school?
- She is ill.
“Why isn't she at school?”
- She's sick.
Alternative question
The question contains a certain alternative, that is, several options. Asking your interlocutor, you offer several options to choose from. "Does she drink tea or coffee?"
Question structure
In the structure of the question there is a dividing union or (or). The structure of the question is similar to the general question. Only at the end is an “or” and an alternative added so that a choice is made.
Do they play football or basketball? “Do they play soccer or basketball?”
How to answer such a question?
Since the question suggests an alternative, it is simply impossible to answer “yes” or “no”. The answer will be at the same time as the question.
Examples:
1. - Does she drink tea or coffee?
- She drinks tea.
“Does she drink tea or coffee?”
- She drinks tea.
2. - Do you like pears or bananas?
- I like bananas.
- Do you like pears or bananas?
- I like bananas.
3. - Will Nancy go to the club or the theater?
- Nancy will go to the theater.
“Will Nancy go to a club or a theater?”
“Nancy will go to the theater.”
Separated question
Question punctuation is divided into two interdependent parts. Hence the name. Do you use a separation question in English to express doubt, or want to confirm your opinion. “You're leaving tomorrow, aren't you?”, “She came to you yesterday, isn’t she?”
Question structure
The decimal point is constructed as a normal positive or negative sentence. The part after the decimal point resembles a brief question:
- Assistant verb (the choice of a verb depends on the time used).
- The character who was in the first part.
The part after the decimal point changes depending on the first part. A ponytail can be either negative or positive.
If the decimal part is positive, then the second part will be negative:
- First positive part + helper verb + not + person who performs the action
If the decimal part is negative, then the second part will be positive:
- First negative part + helper verb + person who performs the action
There are several points worth paying attention to:
1. Even if a specific person (her daughter, Merry, his mother, etc.) is indicated in the first part, it will still be replaced by the corresponding pronoun.
Her daughter can swim, can't she? “Her daughter can swim, right?”
2. If the subject is expressed in the form of the words everyone (everyone), someone (anyone), anyone (anyone), in the second part of the question they are replaced by the pronoun they.
Everyone likes ice-cream, doesn't they? - Everyone loves ice cream, right?
3. If in the first affirmative part of the question is a personal pronoun I, then in the second part are are taken and the particle not is added.
I am clever, aren't I? - I'm smart, right?
4. There are words that carry a negative meaning. Here is some of them:
- never - never;
- nothing - nothing;
- nobody - nobody.
English does not tolerate double negation. If the first part of the question contains words that have a negative meaning, then the “tail” will be positive.
He never play football, does he? - He never played football, right?
How to answer such a question?
The separation question requires a short answer of yes or no, which will be constructed in the same way as when answering the general question.
Examples:
1. - Her mother will buy a car, won't (= will not) she?
- No, she won't.
- Her mom will buy a car, right?
- No, it will not.
2. - Your brother does not smoke, does he?
- Yes, he does.
“Your brother doesn't smoke, does he?”
- Yes.
3. - She is clever, isn't she?
- Yes, she is.
“She's smart, isn't she?”
- Yes.
Question to the subject
First you need to remember what a subject is. It refers to whom or what the sentence refers to. Accordingly, asking this type of question, you want to find out who performs the action or who has any sign. “Who is handsome?”, “Who plays football?”.
Question structure
The peculiarity of the structure of the question is that the word order will be as in the affirmative sentence. You only need to put the question word who or what at the beginning of the sentence.
If you have an affirmative sentence, then the subject simply needs to be replaced with a question word.
He played football - Who played football?
He played football - Who played football?
But you need to remember that the interrogative words what and who are combined with a third person, a single number. That is, the ending -s must be added to the verb.
He plays football - Who plays football?
He plays football - Who played football?
How to answer a question?
The answer can be both short and complete.
The outline of the short answer will look like this:
- Actor.
- Auxiliary.
The structure of the complete answer will not fundamentally differ from the structure of the question. Instead of who you need to put the subject and leave the direct word order.
Examples:
1. - Who sang yesterday?
- Marry did.
- Who sang yesterday?
- Mary.
2. - Who can swim?
- John can swim.
- Who can swim?
- John can swim.