To write a question in Spanish, the sentence’s content should be placed within two question marks. At the beginning of the sentence, place an upside question mark and a right-side up at the end.
Example: ¿Dónde estás? Where are you?
¿Por qué? Why?
To indicate your desire to dictate a question in Spanish, make your voice higher at the end of a sentence. (This corresponds to speaking and question formations in spoken English)
Easiest Questions to Answer: One Word Response
In Spanish, simple statements can be transformed into questions that can give a one-word or simple response (yes, no, maybe, I don’t know). As a beginning Spanish speaker, you will use these the most. However, it is important to understand that some questions indicate a more detailed response.
How do you do this?
- Writing: place question marks around the statement.
- Speaking: change your tone of voice to a higher octave towards the end of the sentence,
Te gusta el queso. You like cheese. ¿Te gusta el queso? Do you like cheese?
El habla ingles. He speaks English. ¿El habla ingles? Does he speak English?
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Spanish
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English
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Sí
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Yes
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No
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No
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Quizás
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Maybe
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No sé
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I don't know
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The way in which Spanish questions can be re-ordered can shift depending on what words you would like to emphasize. However, the order above is easiest for beginners.
Basic Questions
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Spanish
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English
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Qué
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What
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Quién
Quiénes
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Whom
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Cómo
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How
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Cuál
Cuáles
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Which/ What
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Cuánto/a
Plural Cuántos/as
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How many
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Cuando
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When
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Dónde
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Where
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Por qué
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Why
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Para qué
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Why
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These question words indicate a necessity for a longer/ more in-depth answer. Unlike the information above, the speaker should give more detail in their response to such questions.
Syntax and Correctly Forming a Basic Question in Spanish
Question Word + Verb + Subject + (Object)
English: Where is the house?
Spanish: ¿Dónde (question word) está (verb) la casa (subject)
English: When is the event?
Spanish: ¿Cuándo (question word) es (verb) el evento (subject)?
As you can tell in the Basic Questions chart, some sentences require your question word to match plurality of the subject.
