Questions (Page 1 of 2)
Yes/No Questions: this type of questions may begin either with
1. a form of the verbs be and have (but only when have means “haber”),
2. the modal auxiliaries can, may, might, could, should, would, must, will, etc.,
3. or with the auxiliary verb do in any of its forms (do, does, did, will do) if the main verb is NOT any
of the ones mentioned in 1 or 2.
Question
Be
Have (meaning
“haber”)
Is she here?
Are his children at the beach?
Are you ready to go?
Possible answers
Positive
Negative
Yes, she is.
No, she is not / isn’t.
Yes, they are.
No, they are not / aren’t.
Yes, I am.
No, I am not.
Have you visited Panama?
Has she been working?
Have Erick and Anna arrived?
Yes, I have.
No, I have not / haven’t.
Yes, she has.
No, she has not / hasn’t.
Yes, they have. No, they have not / haven’t.
Can you cook?
Should they wait?
Could you come tomorrow?
Yes, I can.
Yes, they
should.
Yes, I could.
No, I cannot / can’t.
No, they should not /
shouldn’t.
No, I could not / couldn’t.
Do you drink coffee?
Does Gina live in an apartment?
Do your siblings go to school?
Yes, I do.
Yes, she does.
Yes, they do.
No, I do not / don’t.
No, she does not / doesn’t.
No, they do not / don’t
Auxiliaries
All other verbs
(both regular
and irregular)
CC BY 2011 by Edwin Quesada Montiel
Questions (Page 2 of 2)
Information Questions: these questions begin with a question word such as what, when, where, how,
who, etc. The answer to an information question is NOT yes or no, instead you have to come up with a
statement that will depend on the situation given. These questions are often a combination of a question
word and a yes/no question (see the examples below):
Question word + yes/no question
Why + are you running?
When + will they come?
Question words
What?
Where?
When?
How?
Why?
Who?
Which?
How many?
How much?
How long?
What:
Where:
When:
How:
Why:
Who:
Which:
How many:
How much:
Possible answers
Because I want to stay healthy / Because it’s late
Tomorrow / I don’t know / Why do you want to know?
Meaning
Qué? o Cuál(es)?
Dónde? Adónde?
Cuándo?
Cómo?
Por qué?
Quién? Quiénes?
Cuál? Cuáles?
Cuántos? Cuántas? (elementos contables, pluralizables)
Cuánto? (elemento no contable, no pluralizable)
Cuánto tiempo?
What’s the weather like?
What did you do yesterday?
Where did you go last year for
vacations?
Where is the hospital?
When do you play golf?
When is your birthday?
How tall are you?
How big is your house?
Why are you sad?
Why are they late?
Who is your teacher?
Who are they?
Which actor do you prefer?
Which is the last book that you read?
How many oranges are there?
How many windows are there?
How much water are you drinking?
How much milk is there?
What kind of music do you like?
What do you like to eat?
Where do you live?
Where does she study?
When will he come?
When were you born?
How old are you?
How are you?
Why is the bank closed?
Why don’t you play tennis?
Who did she visit yesterday?
Who has traveled in a tram?
Which shirt do you like the most?
Which is the best song you’ve ever heard?
How many chairs do we need?
How many children are in the class?
How much money do you have?
How much sugar you need?
CC BY 2011 by Edwin Quesada Montiel