ASKING QUESTIONS – HOW DO WE FORM THEM AND WHAT IS THE CORRECT WORD ORDER IN ENGLISH?
(PART 3)
Questions with all other verbs.
Asking questions with all other English verbs requires a slightly different structure.
Yes/no questions with all other verbs.
- To form questions with all other verbs, you first need to know the word order of statements. Like be verb, it is subject + verb.
We work in a hospital.
He drives and old car.
I ate in a restaurant yesterday.
I get to work by bus.
To form yes/no questions, we need to verb “to do.” Simply put the correct form of do in front of the statement. This applies to both simple present and simple past tenses. Here is the correct word order for questions: do/does/did + subject + base form of the verb.
Do you work in a hospital? we do. No, we don’t.
Does he drive an old car? Yes, he does. No, he doesn’t.
Did you eat in a restaurant yesterday? Yes, I did. No, I didn’t.
Do you get to work by bus? Yes, I do. No, I don’t.
2. For asking yes/no questions in the present progressive tense, first, think of the word order for statements: subject + am/are/is + ing from of the verb.
Roberto is driving to California.
To form yes/no questions, we reverse the word order from statements: am/are/is + subject + ing form of the verb.
Is Roberto driving to California? Yes, he is. No, he isn’t.
3. To ask yes/no questions in the future tense, we can use “will.” Here is the word order for statements: subject + will+ base form of the verb.
My sister will graduate in May.
To form a question, simply reverse the word order form the statement: will + subject + base form of the verb.
Will your sister graduate in May? Yes, she will. No, she won’t.
Wh questions with all other verbs
If you can ask yes/no questions, then asking wh questions is easy. Like asking questions with the be verb, for all other verbs, we simply use the yes/no structure and place the wh word in front so it is the first word of the sentence. This works for all tenses.
- The word order for wh questions in the simple present and simple past is as follows: wh + do/ does/did + subject + base form of the verb. Below is the yes/no structure and the wh structure. You will see that they are very similar.
Does he work in a hospital?
Where does he work? In a hospital.
Do they work on Mondays?
When do they work? Every day except Monday.
Did you call your family last week?
Who did you call last week? My sister, but not my brother.
Do you get to work by train?
How do you get to work? By bus.
2. In the present progressive, we also use the yes/no structure and place the wh word first. Here is the word order: wh + am/are/is + subject + ing form of the verb
Is he driving to Colorado Springs?
Where is he driving? To Colorado Springs.
3. To ask questions in the future tense, again use the yes/no structure and place the wh word in front. Here is the correct word order: wh + will + base form of the verb.
Will you buy a scarf for your mother for her birthday?
What will you buy your mother for her birthday? A sweater. She already has a lot of scarves.
AUTHOR
Dr L Suresh
Assistant Professor of English
Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya College of
Arts and Science
Coimbatore - 641020
Contact: 9944138137
e-mail ID: sureshenglit@rmv.ac.in
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