French Question Words
The question words themselves are short and regular. What takes practice is the three different ways French builds a question around them.
The question words
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qui
kee
-
who
-
que
kuh
-
what
Becomes quoi at the end of a question
-
où
oo
-
where
The accent separates it from ou, meaning or
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quand
kon
-
when
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pourquoi
poor-KWAH
-
why
Literally for what
-
comment
ko-MON
-
how
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quel
kel
-
which, what
quelle, quels or quelles to match the noun
-
combien
kom-BYAN
-
how much, how many
The three shapes of a question
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Tu habites où ?
tuu ah-BEET oo
-
Where do you live?
Spoken French, question word at the end
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Où est-ce que tu habites ?
oo ess kuh tuu ah-BEET
-
Where do you live?
The everyday middle option
-
Où habitez-vous ?
oo ah-bee-tay VOO
-
Where do you live?
Formal, with the verb and pronoun swapped
Which one to actually use
All three mean the same thing. They differ in register, not in meaning.
Est-ce que is the safest for a learner. It is correct in writing and in speech, and it needs no word order changes: put it after the question word and carry on normally.
Inversion, as in Où habitez-vous, is formal and is what you will meet in writing and from someone being polite to you.
Dropping the question word to the end is what friends say to each other. It is very common and completely normal in conversation.
- Comment vous appelez-vous ?What is your name?
- Combien ça coûte ?How much does that cost?
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