❓Question words
What, who, where, when, why, how — the keys that open every conversation.
9 concepts
Columns follow the languages switched on at the top. Gender after the word (m/f/n); IPA beneath; notes, alternatives and origins underneath — nothing is hidden.
| Concept | English | Français | Español |
|---|---|---|---|
what pronoun | what wɒt | que kə also: qu'est-ce que … ?, quoi (after prepositions / alone) Que up front, quoi after prepositions (avec quoi ?). Bare 'Quoi ?' is blunt — 'Comment ?' is the polite pardon. | qué ke Accent ONLY as question/exclamation: ¿qué? but que = that. ¡Qué bonito! = how pretty! |
who pronoun | who huː also: whom (object, formal) Whom survives mostly after prepositions: to whom. | qui ki also: qui est-ce qui … ? Qui never elides: qui est là ? (never qu'est). | quién kjen Accent only as a question. Plural quiénes: ¿quiénes son? |
where adverb | where weə | où u also: où est-ce que … ? The grave accent only distinguishes it from ou 'or' — the only French word with ù. | dónde ˈdonde also: adónde (where to) Accent only as question: ¿dónde? vs donde = where (relative). |
when adverb | when wɛn | quand kɑ̃ also: quand est-ce que … ? Liaison with a t: quand est-ce = /kɑ̃tɛs/. | cuándo ˈkwando Accent only as question: ¿cuándo? vs cuando = when (conjunction). |
why adverb | why waɪ | pourquoi puʁkwa Literally 'for what'. Answered by parce que. | por qué poɾ ˈke Two words + accent = why; porque (one word) = because; el porqué = the reason. Four spellings, one sound family. |
how adverb | how haʊ | comment kɔmɑ̃ Comment ? alone = pardon? Comment ça va ? | cómo ˈkomo Accent only as question: ¿cómo? vs como = as/like. ¿Cómo? = pardon? |
how much / how many adverb | how much haʊ mʌt͡ʃ also: how many (countables) | combien kɔ̃bjɛ̃ Combien de + noun: combien de temps ? C'est combien ? = how much is it? | cuánto ˈkwanto Agrees: cuánta, cuántos, cuántas. ¿Cuánto cuesta? = how much does it cost? |
which pronoun | which wɪt͡ʃ | quel kɛl Agrees on paper — quel, quelle, quels, quelles — but all four sound identical. Lequel = which one. | cuál kwal Plural cuáles. Before ser use cuál, not qué: ¿cuál es tu nombre? |
whose pronoun | whose huːz Not who's (= who is) — the apostrophe trap natives fail. | à qui a ki À qui est ce livre ? = whose book is this? As a relative, use dont: l'homme dont… | de quién de ˈkjen ¿De quién es esto? Cuyo = whose as a relative — formal, fading in speech. |