Interrogative sentences are used to ask questions. In Spanish, they always begin with a question word (like qué, quién, dónde) and are enclosed in upside-down question marks ¿...¿. The verb usually comes before the subject.

Question Words

These are the most common question words in Spanish:

Spanish Question Word	English Meaning	Example (Spanish)	Example (English)
qué	what	¿Qué quieres?	What do you want?
quién / quiénes	who	¿Quién es ella?	Who is she?
dónde	where	¿Dónde estás?	Where are you?
cuándo	when	¿Cuándo vienes?	When are you coming?
por qué	why	¿Por qué lloras?	Why are you crying?
cómo	how	¿Cómo estás?	How are you?
cuál	which	¿Cuál prefieres?	Which do you prefer?
cuánto / cuánta / cuántos / cuántas	how much / how many	¿Cuánto cuesta?	How much does it cost?

Fill in the blank: Do you know ___ is calling?

¿Cuándo llama?

¿Quién llama?

¿Qué llama?

¿Dónde llama?

¿Quién llama?

¿Quién? means 'who' and is used to ask about a person involved in an action.

Forming Yes/No Questions

For questions that can be answered with "yes" or "no," you simply switch the order of the subject and verb. No question word is needed.

Examples:

Spanish	English
Ellos van. → ¿Van ellos?	They go. → Do they go?
Tú comes. → ¿Comes tú?	You eat. → Do you eat?

Answering Questions

For qué and other content questions, provide the specific information requested.
For yes/no questions, answer “sí” (yes) or “no” and add any additional information.

Examples:

Question	Possible Answer	English
¿Qué quieres?	Quiero un café.	I want a coffee.
¿Quién es?	Es mi amigo.	He is my friend.
¿Vienes hoy?	Sí, vengo hoy.	Yes, I’m coming today.

Practice Tips

Always start with ¿ and end with ? in Spanish questions.
Memorize common question words.
Practice switching verb and subject order for yes/no questions.
Try forming questions from statements.

When you're ready, you can move on to the next topic: Interrogative Pronouns.

Flashcards (1 of 13)

English Meaning: what
Example (English): What do you want?

Last updated: Wed Jun 18, 2025