How to form questions - como formar las preguntas

To form questions in English, sometimes we change the order of the subject and verb, but sometimes we use do/does/did.  How can we decide what we have to do?  Para formar las preguntas en inglés, a veces cambiamos el orden del sujeto y del verbo, pero a veces utilizamos do/does/did.  ¿Cómo podemos decidir lo que tenemos que hacer?

Auxiliary verbs – verbos auxiliares

In English, we have helping verbs or auxiliary verbs. Auxiliary verbs typically help another verb, so we can often see two verbs together. The auxiliary verbs in English are be, have and do, together with the modal verbs. En inglés, tenemos verbos auxiliares. Los verbos auxiliares, normalmente auxilian otros verbos, pues a menudo podemos ver dos verbos juntos. Los verbos auxiliares en inglés son be, have y do, junto con los verbos modales.

be, have, do, can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will, would

For these verbs, we change the order of subject and verb to make a question. Con estos verbos, cambiamos el orden del subjeto y del verbo para formar una pregunta.

They are English. Are they English?

He has got a car. Has he got a car? (NB es un verbo auxiliar, haber)

I can go to Jerez. Can I go to Jerez?

They would prefer to stay home. Would they prefer to stay home?

He will buy the coat. Will he buy the coat?

The rest of the verbs – los demás

When there is no auxiliary verb, we use do/does/did to form the question.

Cuando no hay ningún verbo auxiliar, se utilice do/does/did para formar la pregunta.

NB with do/does/did the verb is always the infinitive. NB Con do/does/did el verbo siempre es el infinitivo.

He paints the house. Does he paint the house?

They cook the meal. Do they cook the meal?

You like fish. Do you like fish?

He went to Jerez yesterday. Did he go to Jerez yesterday.

They live here in Alcalá. Do they live here in Alcalá?

He has a car. Does he have a car? (NB, no es un verbo auxiliar, tener)

Wh- questions

What (qué) where (dónde) who (quién) whose (de quién, cuyo) when (cuándo) why (porqué) which (cuál) how (cómo)

Often we start the sentence with these words. If there is an auxiliary verb, we change the order and for the rest, we use do/does/did. A menudo empezamos la frase con estas palabras. Si hay un verbo auxiliar, cambiamos el orden y por los demás, utilizamos do/does/did.

He has been reading. What has he been reading.

She sings. What does she sing?

I am going. Where are you going?

You are cooking. Why are you cooking?

Take care with who. It always refers to a person. If we are asking about the object, we use do/does/did. If we ask about the subject, the verb stays the same.

¡Ten cuidado con who! Siempre se refiere a una persona. Si preguntamos sobre el objeto, utilizamos do/does/did. Si preguntamos sobre el sujeto, el verbo queda lo mismo.

(subject/sujeto) phoned (object/objeto)

Susan phoned someone. Who did Susan phone? (object, objeto)
Here "someone" is the object of the verb. Aquí "someone" es el objeto del verbo.

Someone phoned Susan. Who phoned Susan? (subject, sujeto)

Here "someone" is the subject of the verb.  Aquí "someone" es el sujeto del verbo.

 A common confusion - una confusión común

In english we have one verb for to have but in Spanish, we have two: haber, tener.   En inglés tenemos sólo uno verbo que significa to have pero en español hay dos: haber, tener. So sometimes to have is an auxiliary verb and sometimes it isn't.  Pues a veces to have es un verbo auxiliar y a veces no lo es.

Example

John has a car.  John tiene un coche.  (not auxiliary, no es auxiliar = tener)

Does John have a car?  (NB Utilizamos do/does/did)

John has got a car. John ha conseguido un coche. (verbo auxiliar = haber)

Has John got a car? (NB El orden ha cambiado)

¡Buena suerte con las preguntas!

How to form questions in English - cómo formar las preguntas en inglés

How do we ask questions in English? It depends on the type of answer we expect. Is it a yes/no question, or something more specific?

¿Cómo hacemos preguntas en inglés? Depende en el tipo de respuesta que esperemos. ¿Es una pregunta de yes/no, o algo más específico?

Yes/No – Si/No

We can form a simple yes/no question by changing the position of the subject and the auxiliary verb such as be, can, have.

Podemos formar una pregunta sencilla por medio de cambiar la posición del sujeto y del verbo auxiliar como be, can, have.

They have finished. Have they finished?

You can sing. Can you sing?

She is running. Is she running?

For the simple present and simple past, there is no auxilliary verb, so we use the word do/does – the following verb is in the infinitive.

Los tiempos presente simple y pasado simple no tienen ningún verbo auxiliar, pues utilizamos la palabra do/does – el verbo siguiente es en la forma del infinitivo.

They live here. Do they live here? (live = infinitive)

She likes travelling. Does she like travelling? (like = infinitive)

He went to Jerez. Did he go to Jerez? (go = infinitivo)

What, where, when, who, whose, why, which, how

Here, we want to know something more specific. Aquí, queremos saber algo más específico.

what? = ¿qué? What is she reading?

where? = ¿dónde? Where does he live?

when? = ¿cuándo? When will they arrive?

who? = ¿quién? Who is in the car?

whose? = ¿de quién? Whose house is that?

why? = ¿por qué? Why did he say that?

which? = ¿cuál? Which one would you like to buy?

how? = ¿cómo? How do you cook rice?

Note that the order of the words is changed following these words. Se nota que el orden de las palabras cambia siguiente de estas palabras.

"She is reading" se pone "What is she reading?"

Negative questions – preguntas negativas

Normally we use contractions of not, n't or 't with the verb. Normalmente, utilizamos las contracciones por not, n't o 't con el verbo.

Aren't you going to Cádiz?

Can't you swim?

Haven't you prepared the meal?

Doesn't he work here?

Didn't you visit your father?

You can practise making questions from sentences and provide your own answers. Puede practicar formar las preguntas de las frases y proveer sus respuestas propias. ¡Buena suerte!

[NB En inglés, la palabra practise, con 's' es el verbo y indica una acción, pero la palabra practice, con 'c' significa el nombre.]