Grammar: Adverbs - Interrogative

Grammar: Adverbs - Interrogative

Section: Understanding Interrogative Adverbs

• Interrogative adverbs are used to ask questions about specific types of information, such as location, manner, reason, or quantity.

• The key interrogative adverbs in French are: où (where), pourquoi (why), comment (how), quand (when), and combien (how many/how much).

• Combien is typically used when the question is about quantity or price. For instance, “Combien coûte ce livre?” translates to “How much does this book cost?”

Section: Positioning of Interrogative Adverbs

• Generally, interrogative adverbs are placed at the beginning of the question. For instance, “Où est la bibliothèque ?” (Where is the library?)

• However, in informal spoken French, it is not uncommon to place the interrogative adverb at the end of the sentence with a rising intonation to signify the question. For example, “Tu vas où ?” (Where are you going?)

Section: Usage with Prepositions

• When used with prepositions, some interrogative adverbs can form compound interrogative phrases, e.g. à quoi (what for), de quoi (about what/what about), avec qui (with whom), chez qui (at whose place), and so on.

• It’s important to be aware that whenever a question is asked using a preposition, the preposition should never be placed at the end of the sentence. For instance, “Avec qui vas-tu à la fête?” (Who are you going to the party with?)

Section: Forming Complex Questions

• Complexity can be added to questions by incorporating interrogative pronouns along with interrogative adverbs. An example is “Pourquoi est-ce que tu travailles ?” (Why are you working?). In this case, “est-ce que” constructs the question, and “pourquoi” specifies the information sought.

• When an interrogative adverb is used with inversion, the verb is placed before the subject, for example: “Pourquoi travailles-tu ?” (Why do you work?).