Types of Questions

[« Yes/no » questions and « Wh » questions]

Presented by:
Hanae Rakkas
Presentation plan

What is a Types of Yes/no

question? questions questions

Wh- Conclusion
questions /summary
 What is a question?

❖ A question is an interrogative expression which is written or asked to test knowledge or to elicit

and gain further information from a person or people responding.

❖ Written questions are punctuated with a question mark to show that the sentence has been
completed.
What are the types of questions?

« Yes/no » questions « wh » »qquestions

« Wh uestions
Yes/no questions
 Yes/no
questions

They are also called

closed questions.
There are only two
possible responses
which are: yes or no.
 Yes/no
questions
 Do you want to go?
 You want to go?

 Can you help me with my homework?

When forming a  You help me with my homework?
yes/no question, it
is mandatory to
use: Be,have,do or
a modal verb.
[Uses of « be » in 1. Is Greece a good place to visit?
Yes./ Yes, it is./ Yes, it is a good
yes/no questions] ➢
place.
2. Were you at the café?
➢ No./ No, I was not./ No, I was not at
the café.
1. To ask about the identity or a description of 3. Am I going with you to the supermarket?
someone or something
➢Yes./ Yes, you are.
2. With a preposition to ask about present or
past location 4. Was it snowing in your city?
3. To ask about a current activity or situation ➢Yes./ Yes, it was.
(using present continuous) 5. Are flowers grown here?
4. To ask about a past activity or situation ➢No./ No, they are not.
(using past continuous)
NB : t he r es p ons e ca n b e s hor t (Yes . /
5. With passive voice No.), or l ong : “ Yes or No” f ol l owed
by the subject + verb
[Uses of « have » in
yes/no questions]
 Have you gotten your driven license?
➢ Yes./ Yes, I have.

 To ask if somebody has done something or if

some action has taken place

→ We use present perfect (HAVE + past

participle)
[Uses of « do » in
yes/no questions]
 Did you watch this movie?
➢No./ No, I did not.

 To obtain facts about people, places, or

things
[Uses of modal verbs
in yes/no questions]
 Can he go now?
➢Yes./ Yes, he can.

 To question about possibilities or uncertainties

→ Modal verbs are: (can, could, may, might,

must, ought to, shall, should, will, would and
need)
Negative yes/no questions

We us ual l y us e neg ati v e y es -no q ues ti ons to check or conf i r m

somethi ng w e bel i ev e or expect to be the case, or w hen w e
consi der that somethi ng i s the best thi ng to do:

 Isn’t that Pauline’s car? (I’m asking for confirmation.)

 Shoudn’t we be leaving? (I think that we should leave now.)
Note:
When asking Yes / No questions with DO or a modal verb,
the main verb remains in the base form (without to).
• Do you drink coffee?

However, if there are two verbs that follow DO, the second
verb remains in the infinitive (with to).
• Do you want to drink coffee?
WH- questions
 • WH- questions are questions
that start with WH- words: what,
when,where, which, who,
whom, whose, why and how.
WH- questions • As for this type of questions
there is not a one way answer
(yes or no), as we expect an
answer which gives information
depending on the context.
 Question Usage Examples
words
What To ask about What are you doing

Uses of
things here?
When To ask about When will this

WH- words Where

time
To ask about
presentation end?
Where should i put my
places shoes?
Which Used for Which pants are
choices better?
Who To ask about Who told her about this
people story?
Whom To ask about Whom were you talking
people to?
Whose To ask about Whose bag is this?
possession
Why To ask about Why is she always late?
reasons/ causes
How To ask about How can i solve such a
manner problem?
Difference between who and whom

Who Whom
 Who functions as a subject  Whom functions as an object
 We use it when the question can be  We use it when the question can be
answered with a subject pronoun answered with an object pronoun
Form of WH- questions

1. Wh- word + auxiliary verb + subject + main verb…?

→ What books do you read?

2. Wh- word + main verb…? (the Wh- word is a subject or part of the subject)
→ What happened in school today?
 Conclusion/summary
Yes/no questions
• Two possible answers: yes/no
Definition of a question • It is necessary to use helping verbs: be, do, have and
modal verbs
• A question is anything we write or say which • We use negative yes/no questions to ask for
requires a response. confirmation or to show that something is the best
thing to do

Types of questions
• There are two types of questions: yes/no Wh- questions
questions and wh- questions.
• We use wh- words.
• We can use wh- questions either with an auxiliary verb
or without.
Thank you for your attention!