5 interrogative sentences in Russian. Types of questions in English

According to the purpose of the statement in English language There are three main types of sentences: declarative (declarative sentences), interrogative (interrogative sentences) and imperative (imperative sentences). In this case, we are interested in interrogative sentences. The types of questions in English are as follows: general, alternative, question to the subject, special and disjunctive. Each type has its own characteristics, so we will consider each of them separately.

1. General Question

A general question is asked to the entire sentence as a whole. You can answer it either "yes" or "no". That is why general questions in English are also called yes / no questions. Here the word order is reversed. The first place should be the auxiliary verb (Auxiliary Verb), then the subject (Subject), predicate (Predicate) and other members of the sentence.

For a grammatically correct statement of the question, the auxiliary verb do (does) is required, in the Past Simple - did. If the sentence uses the verb to be or (with the exception of have to and need to) as a predicate, then they will act as auxiliary. Examples:

• Does James smoke? Does James smoke?
• Are you living in London now? — Do you live in London now?
• I have a look at your photos? - Can I see your photos?

Brief answers to general questions depend entirely on the auxiliary verb used. If the question begins with the verb does, then it should also sound in the answer. For instance:

• Does she like English poetry? — Yes, she does. Does she like English poetry? - Yes.
• Is Ann playing the piano? — No, she isn't. Does Anna play the piano? - Not.

2. Alternative question (Alternative Question)

An alternative question in English involves a choice. It always contains the union or (or). The construction of this question is similar to the general one, but here a choice clause is also added. Compare:

• Do you want to go to Warsaw by car? — Do you want to go to Warsaw by car?
• Do you want to go to Warsaw by car or by train?— Do you want to go to Warsaw by car or by train?

• Is Kate going to buy shoes? Is Katya going to buy shoes?
• Is Kate going to buy shoes or high boots? Is Katya going to buy shoes or boots?

3. Question to the subject (Subject Question)

When posing a question to the subject, the direct word order in the sentence does not change. Just use the appropriate question word instead of the subject. Usually used Who (who), What (what). It should be noted that in Present time simple verb will be used in the third person singular. Examples:

• Who lives in that old house? Who lives in that old house?
• Who will post this letter? Who will send?
• What caused the explosion? - What caused the explosion?

4. Special Question

Special questions in English are used to request specific information. They begin with the question words Who (who), What (what), Which (which), When (when), Where (where, where), Why (why), How (how), How many / How much (how much) . The word order after the interrogative word remains the same as in the general question, you just need to remove the part of the sentence to which the question is asked. For instance:

• What does Jane do on Sundays? What does Jane do on Sundays?
• Why are you sitting at my desk? Why are you sitting at my desk?
• When did he borrow your car? When did he take your car?
• How many pictures have they bought? How many paintings did they buy?

Often found in English phrasal verbs, that is, the sentence contains a preposition that is closely related to the main verb. When posing a special question, this preposition is used at the very end of the sentence. For instance:

• What are you busy with? - What are you doing?
• Who was Jack waiting for? Who was Jack waiting for?

5. Disjunctive Question.

Disjunctive questions in English are an affirmative or negative declarative sentence, to which a short general question, often referred to as a "tail" (tag), is attached. This type of question is used to express surprise, doubt, confirmation of what has been said. The “tail” itself is translated into Russian as “isn’t it”, “isn’t it”.

When posing a question, the first part remains unchanged, in the second part an auxiliary verb is placed at the beginning (depends on the predicate in the first part), and then comes the pronoun in the nominative. If the sentence is affirmative, then the “tail” must be made negative and vice versa. Examples:

• you heard from him, didn't you? You have heard from him, haven't you?
• Alex is a driver, isn't he? Alex is the driver, isn't he?
• That isn't tom is it? It's Tom, isn't it?
• Ann hasn't got color TV set has vshe? Anya doesn't have a color TV, does she?

Considering this type of question, it should be noted that tag questions in English have several nuances that are important to remember.
1. I am the first part requires a question aren't I.

• I'm so exhausted, aren't I? "I'm so tired of everything, aren't I?"

2. If the first part starts with let's, then in the second part we use the question shall we.

• Let's visit our grandparents, shall we? Let's visit our grandparents, okay?

3. If the pronouns anyone, anybody, nobody, none, neither, everybody, everyone, somebody, someone are used as the subject in the sentence, then the pronoun is put in the second part they. For instance:

• Neither of them prepared for the lesson, did they? None of them prepared for the lesson, did they?
• Someone had seen him, hadn't they? Someone saw him, didn't they?
• Everyone liked your story, didn't they? Everyone liked your story, right?

There are 5 types of questions in English. Mastering them will not be difficult if you know the word order in declarative sentences and can ask general questions to them.

Every day we ask questions. For example, we often ask:

How are you?

What did you do yesterday?

Who will go to the store?

Are you going to the cafe or not?

Everyone who is learning English should know how questions are formed, because without them you will not be able to communicate. In English there is 5 types of questions. In the English course for adults, you will work out each of them to automatism. For now, let's see how they differ.

Special questions in English

The word "special" means "designed exclusively for something." Accordingly, this question needed to find out the specific information you are interested in. Therefore, it is called special, that is, you want to clarify special information.

for instance

Where are you going to rest?

We will find out specific information - the place where the person will go.

How to build a special question?

It is asked using the following question words:

• what - what
• where - where,
• when - when
• who - who,
• why - why,
• how (much/often/long) - how (many/often/long).

A special question is built according to the scheme:

Interrogative word + auxiliary verb + character + action being performed?

Examples

Walkthrough
>> How to ask specific questions.

Question to the subject in English

The subject calls who or what the sentence is about.

In a survey, the subject is asked with the interrogative words who and what, which replace the character or object referred to in the sentence. for instance

Who will pack your suitcase for you?

Therefore, we ask the question to the subject when we do not know who performed the action or has a sign.

How to construct a question to the subject?

The peculiarity of this question will be the order of words in the sentence. In this type of question, the word order never changes and goes like in an affirmative sentence. The scheme of such a proposal would be as follows:

Who + action?

For example we have affirmative sentence

They played tennis.
They played tennis.

We just substitute the question word who instead of they.

Who played tennis?
Who played tennis?

At the same time, we imagine that who / what is the singular person in question (he, she). Therefore, the sentence should be constructed as if in place of who/what costs he/she.

For example, we have an offer

They were in the car.
They were in the car.

When asked, we forget about they and represent he in its place, therefore, we replace were with was

Who were in the car?
Who was in the car?

Examples

Who likes to sing?
Who loves to sing?

What was in the box?
What was in the box?

Who is a doctor?
Who is the doctor?

Walkthrough:
>> How to build a question to the subject? .

Alternative questions in English

True to its name, this question involves an alternative, that is, the right to choose. Asking him we give the interlocutor two options to choose from.

Example

Will you fly to England or Germany?

In this matter, always there is a union or (or). The question itself is built as a general question, only at the end with our or we add a choice clause.

Scheme for constructing an alternative question:

Auxiliary verb + actor + action performed + ___ or ___?

Examples

Will they go to the park or to the cinema?
Will they go to the park or to the cinema?

Did buy apples or pears?
Did you buy apples or pears?

Does he work or study?
Is he working or studying?

Walkthrough:
>> How to build an alternative question correctly.

Separating questions in English

This type of question is also called a "tail question". A question expresses doubt or desire for confirmation of something.

for instance

You've already packed your suitcase, haven't you?

It is divisive because consists of 2 parts, separated by a comma.

The first part is built as an affirmative or negative sentence with the usual word order.

The second part (“tail”) looks like a short question. It consists of:

• auxiliary verb (depends on the time used in the first part);
• character (I, you, he, she, they, it, we, you) used in the first part.

We translate such a "tail" into Russian as "isn't it so" / "isn't it true."

1. If the first part of the sentence is affirmative, then the second part is negative.

Affirmative sentence + auxiliary verb + not (abbreviated) + character?

Examples

He called you yesterday didn't he?
He called you yesterday, didn't he?

They play tennis every weekend don't they?
They play tennis every weekend, don't they? Examples

So, we have analyzed all five types of questions in English. Now let's move on to practice.

Reinforcement task

Make 5 types of questions from the following affirmative sentences:

1. He went to school yesterday.
2. She gave me a phone.
3. We will read this book.
4. They bought a car.
5. She doesn't like to cook.

Leave your answers in the comments below the article.

There are five types of questions in English:

I. General Question - General Question(for convenience of notation in further formulas, we denote this type of question by the letter T).

II. Alternative Question(question-choice).

III. Special Question Special Question

IV. Disjunctive question(question-request, declarative sentence + short question to it ( Question Tags)).

V. Question to the subject.

Characteristics of question types

I - applied to the whole offer, and it can be given short answer "yes" or "no":

Do you live in Kiev? - Yes.
He is a student? - Not.

II - question-choice that cannot be answered with "yes" or "no" you have to choose an answer:

Do you live in Kiev or Lvov? - I live in Kiev.
Is he a student or a worker? - Student.

III - is put to some separate word (member) of the sentence(requires a specific answer). Based on this characteristic, we can put a question to the word - subject in the sentence, and this will also be a special question. But the construction of a question to the subject differs from the construction of all other special questions, so the question to the subject is placed in independent type questions ( V).

Where do you live?
Who is he?

IV - corresponds to Russian questions - questions like "is not it?", "it's true?". These questions, as well as general questions, require an affirmative or negative answer, that is, the affirmation or denial of the thought expressed in the question.

I live in Kiev, right?
He's not a student, is he?

V - to questions to the subject or to its definition short answers are usually given, which consist of the subject and the appropriate auxiliary verb in the required person, number, tense.

Who lives on Kiev? My sister does.

Building questions

1. The basis for constructing all types of questions(except the last one) is a common question. There are two ways to construct a general question:

First way refers to all sentences whose predicate is any form of verbs "to be", "to have" or modal verbs (if they are part of a complex predicate). The general question according to the first method is built according to the rule of the verb "to be".

Is not a student.
Is he a student?

I have read the book.
Have I read the book?

Second way applies to all other sentences (when the verbs listed above are not included in the predicate). The general question for the second method is built according to the formula:

Everyone knows this phrase without error, even those who cannot say anything else in English. It is taken as an example, a standard of a general question.

Using the substitution method according to this formula, you can put a general question to any sentence that fits the second method of constructing a question.

I live in Kiev.
Do I live in Kiev?

We lived in Kiev last year.
Did we live in Kiev last year?

He lives in Kiev.
Does he live in Kiev?

Having mastered the construction of the general question (which we T), we can proceed to the construction of all other questions.

2. An alternative question consists of a general question plus a choice given through the word "or" ("or").

Do you live in Kiev or in Lvov?

Briefly, this construction can be written as follows: T + "or".

3. A special question consists of a special word plus a general question.

Special questions are:

what- what, who
who- who
whose- whose, whose
where- where, where
when- when
why- why
which- which one, etc.

In all these special words, the first two letters are common. "wh", so the special question formula can be written as follows: "wh" + T

4. Separation questions consist of 2 parts: First part represents narration(declarative sentence) - affirmative or negative, a the second is a short general question for the first part (Question Tags), which consists of:

a) auxiliary (or modal) verb in the required form

b) subject (always in the form of a pronoun)

c) there is always an inverse relationship between the first and second parts: if the 1st part is positive, then the 2nd is negative and vice versa.

The tag question formula: S, + start T.

I live in Kiev.
I live in Kiev, don't I?
My friend is a student, isn't he?

Examples of the use of tag questions are discussed in scene 11.

5. To build question to subject(or its definition) in a declarative sentence, you only need to replace the subject with a question word who "who" or what "what", "which", whose "whose", which "which the". No more build changes.

Question words who, what, which usually agree with the verb-predicate in the 3rd person singular.

I live in Kiev?
Who lives in Kiev?
My friend is a student.
Who is a student?

Our topic today is the English language. Namely: how to ask them correctly, about the difference between general and special questions, questions to the subject, and also talk about the use of various interrogative words. This topic is relevant for students of any level of language proficiency, because mistakes are possible even on more high level when it comes to building questions in English. They confuse word order, skip auxiliary verbs, use wrong intonation. Our mission is to prevent such errors from occurring. Can we start?

The first thing to know about questions in English is that they are different from the structure of affirmative sentences. We usually (but not always!) ask questions in English by changing the word order: we put the auxiliary verb first before the subject. Another (main) verb is placed after the subject.

Continuing to delve into this topic, it should be mentioned what types of questions are in the English language. Differences in the construction of those very questions in English depend on this.

5 types of questions in English

Common question in English

We ask this question when we want to know general information. Are you learning English? We can answer it with one word “yes” or “no”.

Special question

We need such questions in order to find out certain, specific information that interests us. When did you start learning English?

Question to the subject

We ask it when we want to know who is performing the action. Who teaches in your English courses?

Alternative question

This is a question in which a choice of 2 options is given. Do you study English with a teacher or on your own?

Separated question

This question involves confirmation of some information. You continue to study English in the summer, don't you?

Now let's look at how each of these questions is built in English.

General issues

In the formation of such questions, the reverse word order is used. This means that we put the auxiliary verb in the first place, the subject in the second place, and the main verb in the third place.

Tom likes swimming in the sea. -Does( auxiliary) Tom ( subject) like ( main verb) swimming in the sea?

She goes to work everyday. -Does( auxiliary) she ( subject) go ( main verb) to work everyday?

General questions in English are also built with modal verbs. In this case, the modal verb will replace the auxiliary, that is, it will be placed in the first place.

Could you close the door, please? - Could you close the door, please?

May I come in? - May I come in?

Should I put on a sweater? - Should I wear this sweater?

Pay attention to the verb to be. We can safely consider it special - in general questions, you do not need to add an auxiliary verb to it.

Is he a teacher? - He is a teacher?

Was the weather good yesterday? - Was the weather good yesterday?

We form a negative general question. To do this, you need to add a particle not. It will come immediately after the subject. However, if we use the shortened form not - n't she will stand in front of him. Let's look at an example:

Does she not go to work on Sunday? = Doesn’t she go to work on Sunday? Does she not go to work on Sunday?

Have you not watched this movie? = Haven't you watched this movie? - Have you seen this movie?

Special questions

This type of question requires a detailed and detailed explanation. A special question can be asked to any member of an interrogative sentence in English. The word order in such questions is the same as in general, only one of the question words must be put at the beginning:

• What?- What?
• When?- When?
• Where?- Where?
• Why?- Why?
• Which?- Which the?
• Whose?- Whose?
• Whom?- Whom?

In a descriptive format, we will build a special question according to the following scheme:

Interrogative word + auxiliary (or modal) verb + subject + predicate + object + other members of the sentence.

Easier - on an example:

What (question word) are (auxiliary) you (subject) cooking (predicate)? - What are you cooking?

What (question word) do (auxiliary verb l) you (subject) want to eat (predicate)? - What do you want to eat?

When (question word) did (auxiliary) you (subject) leave (predicate) the house (addition)? - When did you leave home?

Due to the fact that a special question in English is posed to almost any member of the sentence (addition, circumstance, definition, subject), you can use it to find out any information.

Questions to the subject

This type of questions differs from the previous topics discussed, since auxiliary verbs are not used in its construction. You just need to replace the subject with who or what, add interrogative intonation and veil - the question is ready.

The scheme for constructing a question to the subject in English is as follows:

Interrogative word + predicate + minor members of the sentence

Who went to the supermarket? - Who went to the supermarket?

What happened to your friend? - What happened to your friend?

Who did that? - Who did this?

At first glance it is very simple. But one should not confuse questions to the subject and special questions questions in English to the addition. An addition is a member of a sentence that gives some Additional information and answers questions in English: “who?”, “what?”, “to whom?”, “what?”, “what?”. And most often the question to the addition begins with the interrogative pronoun who or whom and what. This is where the similarity with questions to the subject lies. Only context will help you figure it out. Examples for comparison:

The girl saw me yesterday. - The girl saw me yesterday.
Whom (Who) did the girl see yesterday? - Who did the girl see yesterday?

We are waiting for the train. - We're waiting for the train.
What are you waiting for? - What are you waiting for?

Alternative questions

Based on the name, it is clear that these questions involve an alternative or the right to choose. By asking them, we give the interlocutor two options.

Will you fly to England or Ireland? - Will you fly to England or Ireland?

In such a question, there is always the union "or" - or. The question itself is built as a general one, only at the end with the help of the above or we add a selection.

Scheme for constructing a question:

Auxiliary verb + actor + action performed + ... or ...

Will they go to the park or to the cinema? - Will they go to the park or to the cinema?

Did you buy apples or pears? - Did you buy apples or pears?

Does he work or study? - Does he work or study?

If an alternative question contains several auxiliary verbs, then we place the first one before the subject, and the rest immediately after it.

She has been studying for several years. She has been studying for several years.
Has she been studying or working for several years? - Is she studying or working for several years?

An alternative question in English can also begin with a question word. Then such a question consists directly of a special question and the following two homogeneous members of an interrogative sentence in English, which are connected by means of a union or.

When were you interrupted: at the beginning or in the middle of your speech? - When were you interrupted: at the beginning or in the middle of your speech?

Separation questions

These questions in English can hardly be called questions in full, since their first part is very similar to an affirmative sentence. We use them when we are not 100% sure about something and we want to check or clarify the information.

Separation questions consist of two parts: the first is an affirmative or negative sentence, the second is a short question. The second part is separated from the first comma and is called tag or in the Russian version "tail". That is why the disjunctive questions are also called tag-questions or tail questions of the English language.

Discrimination questions are very popular in spoken English. And that's why:

• They do not ask the question directly, but encourage the interlocutor to answer.
• They can express many emotions and states (irony, doubt, politeness, surprise, etc.).
• They use direct word order. A regular sentence is built, a “tail” is added to it, and the question is ready.

In Russian, "tails" are translated by the words "true", "isn't it true", "isn't it", "correctly", "yes".

Let's look at some examples and see for ourselves:

I am your friend, aren't I? - I'm your friend, right?

He isn't your brother, is he? - He's not your brother, is he?

They aren't at home now, are they? They're not at home right now, are they?

Your friend worked in IT, didn't he? - Your friend worked in IT, didn't he?

You used to get up at 5 a.m., didn't you? - You got up early at 5 am, right?

Pay attention to the “tails” for the pronoun I (I) - in the negative sentence, the auxiliary verb changes.

I am not right, am I? - I'm wrong, right?
I am right, aren't I? - I'm right, right?

If you have a sentence with a verb have, then several options for “tails” are possible with it.

You have a cat, have you? (British English) - You have a cat, don't you?
We have a car, don't we? (American English) - We have a car, right?

Also sometimes there is no negative in the first part of the sentence not before the auxiliary verb, and it will still be considered negative. For example: They never went there, … What shall we deliver? Right, did they! And all because the word never(never) is negative. For words like never, can be attributed rarely(rarely), scarcely(barely) hardly(hardly), barely(barely) little(few), few(several).

They rarely go out, do they? - They rarely go out, do they? ( there is a word with a negative meaning rarely)

It's unbelievable, is it? - It's incredible, right? ( the word unbelievable with a negative prefix, so the first part is considered negative)

Nothing is impossible, is it? - Nothing is impossible, right? ( nothing and impossible are words with a negative meaning)

They have nowhere to go, do they? - They have nowhere to go, right? ( nowhere - a word with a negative meaning)

Conclusion

As you managed to replace, there is nothing complicated in asking a question and finding out the information of interest. We hope that this article will help you deal with all the subtleties and nuances. Learn English, be inquisitive and ask the correct English questions to your interlocutors. Cheers!

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