🌱Asking Questions

Hacer Preguntas

A1 · Stage 1 · Week 10~60 minutes

After this lesson, you'll be able to:

  • ✓Use interrogative words (qué, dónde, cuándo, cómo, por qué, cuánto, quién)
  • ✓Ask about places, times, people, and reasons
  • ✓Answer common questions with full sentences
  • ✓Combine question words with verbs from Weeks 8-9

Grammar Focus

Essential grammar for this lesson with examples.

Recap: Building Conversations

In Weeks 8 and 9, you learned to conjugate -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs. Now it's time to ask questions! In Spanish, making a question is simple - you change the intonation (voice goes up) and add ¿...? marks. Listen to the same words as a statement and as a question:

Can you hear the difference?

Statement
Hablas español.You speak Spanish.
Question
¿Hablas español?Do you speak Spanish?

Examples:

¿Hablas español?Do you speak Spanish?
¿Comes en casa?Do you eat at home?
¿Vives aquí?Do you live here?
¿Trabajas los sábados?Do you work on Saturdays?
Tip: In Spanish, you don't need a helper word like "do" in English. Just raise your voice at the end: "¿Hablas español?" = "Do you speak Spanish?"

¿Qué? - What?

¿Qué? is one of the most useful question words. Use it to ask about things, actions, and preferences:

Common ¿Qué...? Questions

PersonSingularPlural
About actions¿Qué haces?¿Qué hacéis?
About food¿Qué comes?¿Qué coméis?
About work¿Qué estudias?¿Qué estudian?
About things¿Qué es esto?¿Qué son estos?

Examples:

¿Qué comes?What do you eat?
¿Qué estudias?What do you study?
¿Qué es esto?What is this?
¿Qué haces los fines de semana?What do you do at weekends?
Tip: ¿Qué? always has an accent mark when it's a question. Without the accent, "que" means "that" or "which" (relative pronoun).

¿Dónde? (Where?) / ¿De dónde? (Where from?)

¿Dónde? asks about location. ¿De dónde? asks about origin. These are essential for finding places and learning about people:

Examples:

¿Dónde vives?Where do you live?
¿De dónde eres?Where are you from?
¿Dónde está el banco?Where is the bank?
¿Dónde trabajas?Where do you work?
Tip: Remember from Week 5: Use "estar" for location (¿Dónde está?) and "ser" for origin (¿De dónde eres?).

¿Cuándo? (When?) / ¿A qué hora? (At what time?)

¿Cuándo? asks about when something happens. ¿A qué hora? asks for specific times - linking back to your Week 7 time expressions:

Examples:

¿Cuándo llegas?When do you arrive?
¿A qué hora comes?What time do you eat?
¿Cuándo es la fiesta?When is the party?
¿A qué hora abren?What time do they open?
Tip: ¿Cuándo? = general time (tomorrow, Monday, in summer). ¿A qué hora? = specific clock time (at 3:00, at noon).

¿Cómo? - How?

¿Cómo? is incredibly versatile. You already know it from greetings (¿Cómo estás?) and introductions (¿Cómo te llamas?). It also asks about descriptions and methods:

Examples:

¿Cómo estás?How are you?
¿Cómo te llamas?What's your name?
¿Cómo es tu hermano?What's your brother like?
¿Cómo vas al trabajo?How do you get to work?
Tip: Notice the accent: cómo vs como. You already know "como" means "I eat" (Week 9). Both stress the first syllable, but the written accent (tilde) tells you it's the question word. This applies to all question words: qué/que, dónde/donde, cuándo/cuando - the accented version is always the question form. In natural speech, question words carry extra emphasis, while words like "como" (as/like) can lose their stress entirely.

¿Por qué? (Why?) / Porque (Because)

¿Por qué? (two words, with accent) asks "why?" Porque (one word, no accent) answers "because". Notice the spelling difference - this catches many learners out!

Examples:

¿Por qué estudias español?Why do you study Spanish?
Porque me gusta.Because I like it.
¿Por qué no comes carne?Why don't you eat meat?
Porque soy vegetariano.Because I'm vegetarian.
Tip: ¿Por qué? = two words + accent = WHY? (question). Porque = one word, no accent = BECAUSE (answer). Links to Week 6: "Porque me gusta."

¿Cuánto? (How much?) / ¿Cuántos? (How many?) / ¿Quién? (Who?)

¿Cuánto? asks about quantity or price. It changes to match gender/number: cuánto (masc.), cuánta (fem.), cuántos (masc. pl.), cuántas (fem. pl.). ¿Quién? asks about people:

Examples:

¿Cuánto cuesta?How much does it cost?
¿Cuántos hermanos tienes?How many brothers do you have?
¿Quién es ella?Who is she?
¿Cuántas personas hay?How many people are there?
Tip: Links to Week 3: ¿Cuántos hermanos tienes? ¿Quién es tu mejor amigo?

Conversation Example

Ana is new in Pablo's neighbourhood and asks him about places nearby.

Ana
Pablo, ¿dónde hay un buen restaurante por aquí?Pablo, where is there a good restaurant around here?
Pablo
Hay uno muy bueno cerca del parque. Se llama 'El Jardín'.There's a very good one near the park. It's called 'El Jardín'.
Ana
¿Qué tipo de comida tienen?What kind of food do they have?
Pablo
Comida española. El pescado es muy bueno.Spanish food. The fish is very good.
Ana
¿A qué hora abren?What time do they open?
Pablo
Abren a las doce para el almuerzo.They open at twelve for lunch.
Ana
¿Y dónde está la farmacia más cercana?And where is the nearest pharmacy?
Pablo
Está al lado del banco, muy cerca.It's next to the bank, very close.
Ana
¿Por qué no hay supermercado aquí?Why isn't there a supermarket here?
Pablo
Hay uno, pero está un poco lejos. Está cerca de la estación.There is one, but it's a bit far. It's near the station.

🌍 Asking for Help in Spanish

In Spanish-speaking countries, it's polite to greet before asking questions. Start with "Disculpe" (excuse me, formal) or "Perdona" (informal). Always thank with "Gracias." Spaniards may give directions using landmarks rather than street names - "al lado del parque" (next to the park) is more common than a street address. In Latin America, you might hear "¿Me puede ayudar?" (Can you help me?) as a polite opener. Remember: a friendly greeting goes a long way!

Want to learn more?

📚Directions & Places→📚Regular verbs (present tense)→