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Interrogative sentences in German
17.06.2024
4 minutes to read
Today we are going to tell you about question sentences in German. If you've ever wondered how to ask "What's your name?" or "Where is the toilet?" in German, you're definitely here! Question sentences help us learn new things and communicate with other people. Let's find out how to construct them correctly and what words to use so that everything is clear and simple. Let's go!
Table of contents
So, how do you ask a question in German? Actually, it is not as difficult as it may seem at first glance. Let's start with the simplest types of questions.
Questions with a question word
First, let's deal with question words. Here are a few of the most common ones:
Wer? - Who?
Was? - What?
Wo? - Where?
Wann? - When?
Warum? - Why?
Wie? - How?
For example, if you want to ask where something is, you would say, "Wo ist die Toilette?" (Where is the toilet?). Or, if you want to know the time, ask: "Wann beginnt der Film?" (When does the movie start?).
Questions without a question word
Now let's look at questions that don't require a question word. It's even easier! All you have to do is change the word order. For example:
Du kommst.
Kommst du? (Are you coming?)
See the difference? We just switched the subject and the predicate. That's it!
Verb-conjunction questions
There are also questions with a verb-conjunction, such as "to be". Nothing complicated here either. Compare:
Er ist mein Freund.
Ist er dein Freund? (Is he your friend?)
A little practice
Let's try to put together some questions:
Wo wohnst du? (Where do you live?)
Wie alt bist du? (How old are you?)
Was machst du? (What are you doing?)
Questions with a question word
First, let's deal with question words. Here are a few of the most common ones:
Wer? - Who?
Was? - What?
Wo? - Where?
Wann? - When?
Warum? - Why?
Wie? - How?
For example, if you want to ask where something is, you would say, "Wo ist die Toilette?" (Where is the toilet?). Or, if you want to know the time, ask: "Wann beginnt der Film?" (When does the movie start?).
Questions without a question word
Now let's look at questions that don't require a question word. It's even easier! All you have to do is change the word order. For example:
Du kommst.
Kommst du? (Are you coming?)
See the difference? We just switched the subject and the predicate. That's it!
Verb-conjunction questions
There are also questions with a verb-conjunction, such as "to be". Nothing complicated here either. Compare:
Er ist mein Freund.
Ist er dein Freund? (Is he your friend?)
A little practice
Let's try to put together some questions:
Wo wohnst du? (Where do you live?)
Wie alt bist du? (How old are you?)
Was machst du? (What are you doing?)
How to ask a question in German
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Word order in an interrogative sentence with an interrogative word
Now let's take a closer look at the word order in interrogative sentences with a question word. There are rules here too, but they are quite simple.
Basic rule
When you start a question with a question word, it is usually followed by a verb and then the subject. Let's look at some examples of this:
Was machst du? (What are you doing?)
Here "Was" is the question word, "machst" is the verb, and "du" is the subject.
Wo wohnst du? (Where do you live?)
Here "Wo" is the question word, "wohnst" is the verb, and "du" is the subject.
More examples
Here are a few more examples to better understand how this works:
Wann kommst du? (When will you come?)
"Wann" is the question word, "kommst" is the verb, and "du" is the subject.
Warum lernst du Deutsch? (Why are you learning German?)
"Warum" is the question word, "lernst" is the verb, and "du" is the subject.
Questions with modal verbs
If there is a modal verb in the question (e.g. können, müssen, wollen), the word order remains the same, but the verb in the infinitive goes to the end of the sentence:
Was kannst du spielen? (What can you play?)
"Was" is the question word, "kannst" is the modal verb, "du" is the subject, and "spielen" is the infinitive.
Wann musst du gehen? (When do you have to leave?)
"Wann" is the question word, "musst" is the modal verb, "du" is the subject, and "gehen" is the infinitive.
A little practice
Now let's put some questions together:
Wie heißt du? (What's your name?)
Was isst du gerne? (What do you like to eat?)
Woher kommst du? (Where are you from?)
Wie lange bleibst du? (How long will you stay?)
Basic rule
When you start a question with a question word, it is usually followed by a verb and then the subject. Let's look at some examples of this:
Was machst du? (What are you doing?)
Here "Was" is the question word, "machst" is the verb, and "du" is the subject.
Wo wohnst du? (Where do you live?)
Here "Wo" is the question word, "wohnst" is the verb, and "du" is the subject.
More examples
Here are a few more examples to better understand how this works:
Wann kommst du? (When will you come?)
"Wann" is the question word, "kommst" is the verb, and "du" is the subject.
Warum lernst du Deutsch? (Why are you learning German?)
"Warum" is the question word, "lernst" is the verb, and "du" is the subject.
Questions with modal verbs
If there is a modal verb in the question (e.g. können, müssen, wollen), the word order remains the same, but the verb in the infinitive goes to the end of the sentence:
Was kannst du spielen? (What can you play?)
"Was" is the question word, "kannst" is the modal verb, "du" is the subject, and "spielen" is the infinitive.
Wann musst du gehen? (When do you have to leave?)
"Wann" is the question word, "musst" is the modal verb, "du" is the subject, and "gehen" is the infinitive.
A little practice
Now let's put some questions together:
Wie heißt du? (What's your name?)
Was isst du gerne? (What do you like to eat?)
Woher kommst du? (Where are you from?)
Wie lange bleibst du? (How long will you stay?)
Now let's look at how to construct question sentences without a question word. These questions are even easier because they require only a slight change in word order.
Basic rule
Interrogative sentences without an interrogative word are constructed by rearranging the subject and predicate. That is, the verb comes first in such sentences, followed by the subject. Let's look at some examples:
Du spielst Fußball. (You play soccer.)
Spielst du Fußball? (Do you play soccer?)
Er liest ein Buch. (He's reading a book.)
Liest er ein Buch? (Is he reading a book?)
More examples
Here are a few more examples to better understand how it works:
Sie kommt zur Party. (She's coming to the party.)
Kommt sie zur Party? (Is she coming to the party?)
Ihr lernt Deutsch. (You're learning German.)
Lernt ihr Deutsch? (Are you learning German?)
Questions with modal verbs
When there is a modal verb in a sentence, it too comes first and the main verb goes to the end:
Du kannst singen. (You can sing.)
Kannst du singen? (Can you sing?)
Wir müssen gehen. (We have to go.)
Müssen wir gehen? (Do we have to go?)
Past tense questions
If you want to ask a question in the past tense, the word order remains the same. Only the auxiliary verb "haben" or "sein" comes first:
Du hast das Buch gelesen. (You have read the book.)
Hast du das Buch gelesen? (Have you read the book?)
Er ist nach Hause gegangen. (He went home.)
Ist er nach Hause gegangen?
A little practice
Now let's try to put some questions together:
Du bist glücklich. (You're happy.)
Bist du glücklich? (Are you happy?)
Sie mag Schokolade. (She likes chocolate.)
Mag sie Schokolade? (Does she like chocolate?)
Ihr habt Hunger. (You're hungry.)
Habt ihr Hunger? (Are you hungry?)
Now you know how to ask questions without question words in German! Try practicing by asking questions to your friends or parents. You'll see, it's very easy and fun! Good luck learning German!
Basic rule
Interrogative sentences without an interrogative word are constructed by rearranging the subject and predicate. That is, the verb comes first in such sentences, followed by the subject. Let's look at some examples:
Du spielst Fußball. (You play soccer.)
Spielst du Fußball? (Do you play soccer?)
Er liest ein Buch. (He's reading a book.)
Liest er ein Buch? (Is he reading a book?)
More examples
Here are a few more examples to better understand how it works:
Sie kommt zur Party. (She's coming to the party.)
Kommt sie zur Party? (Is she coming to the party?)
Ihr lernt Deutsch. (You're learning German.)
Lernt ihr Deutsch? (Are you learning German?)
Questions with modal verbs
When there is a modal verb in a sentence, it too comes first and the main verb goes to the end:
Du kannst singen. (You can sing.)
Kannst du singen? (Can you sing?)
Wir müssen gehen. (We have to go.)
Müssen wir gehen? (Do we have to go?)
Past tense questions
If you want to ask a question in the past tense, the word order remains the same. Only the auxiliary verb "haben" or "sein" comes first:
Du hast das Buch gelesen. (You have read the book.)
Hast du das Buch gelesen? (Have you read the book?)
Er ist nach Hause gegangen. (He went home.)
Ist er nach Hause gegangen?
A little practice
Now let's try to put some questions together:
Du bist glücklich. (You're happy.)
Bist du glücklich? (Are you happy?)
Sie mag Schokolade. (She likes chocolate.)
Mag sie Schokolade? (Does she like chocolate?)
Ihr habt Hunger. (You're hungry.)
Habt ihr Hunger? (Are you hungry?)
Now you know how to ask questions without question words in German! Try practicing by asking questions to your friends or parents. You'll see, it's very easy and fun! Good luck learning German!
Word order in an interrogative sentence without an interrogative word
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