Hi explorers! Today, we're going on a word adventure to learn about special question words called 'Wh-Questions'. These words are like super detectives – they help us find out cool information! Words like Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How are our main tools. If you want to know who ate the cookie, you use 'Who?'. If you want to know what someone is doing, you use 'What?'. It's like asking for a missing puzzle piece to complete the picture. Let's learn how to ask great questions!
Wh-Type Questions
Framing Questions
A question is that form of a sentence which seeks confirmation or some information with regard to time, place, manner, reason, etc.
e.g. Do you have brothers and sisters? [Seeking confirmation: Yes or No]
When will the taxi arrive? [seeking information about time]
Where have you put my key? [seeking information about place]
How does she dance? [seeking information about manner]
Why is Ajith absent today? [seeking information about reason]
Some common words used to seek information are:
What, when, where, why, how, whose, which, how much/many.
Exercise
Frame questions for the following sentences so as to get the underlined answer:
Spider webs are delicate, yet very strong.
How are spider webs?
A rainbow colours the entire sky.
What colours the entire sky?
The greatest difficulty was in identifying the plants.
What was the greatest difficulty?
Dialogues throughout the book are lively.
How are the dialogues throughout the book?
The books have a few drawbacks.
What do the books have?
I've been asked to bring back a vaccine for a horse.
What have I been asked to bring back?
I went in search of a nearby shop where I had seen ties.
What did I go in search of?
The driver refused to wait.
Who refused to wait?
Parking was prohibited.
What was prohibited?
Nature soothes and nurtures.
What does nature do?
My greatest guru was my mother.
Who was my greatest guru?
Parallel lines never meet.
What kind of lines never meet?
It must answer the experimental test.
What must it answer?
Superstitions of various kinds are prevalent among the masses.
What is prevalent among the masses?
Cones are the most popular means of application of mehendi.
What is the most popular means of application of mehendi?
Muslims hold the application of henna to be a meritorious act.
Who holds the application of henna to be a meritorious act?
We went to rocky beach and saw the spread of the majestic ocean.
Where did we go and see the spread of the majestic ocean?
Their teamwork and perseverance were impressive.
What was impressive?
Saina is exceptional.
Who is exceptional?
What is important is not to get carried away.
What is important?
The yawning gap of 12 percent between demand and supply of electricity continues to be an acute problem.
What continues to be an acute problem?
There are numerous reasons for India to "go solar".
What does India have numerous reasons for?
The government has launched the Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) mechanism.
What has the government launched?
My father died when I was six.
When did my father die?
The resin is collected from the roots.
From where is the resin collected?
Performing an act of kindness produces a positive attitude.
What does performing an act of kindness produce?
More Fun Examples!
Let's try to make questions for these sentences too:
The cat is sleeping on the warm mat.
Where is the cat sleeping?
My favorite color is blue.
What is your favorite color?
She will visit her grandmother next week.
When will she visit her grandmother?
He is sad because he lost his toy.
Why is he sad?
The tall man with the hat is my uncle.
Who is your uncle?
I need three apples for the pie.
How many apples do you need for the pie?
This is Sarah's pencil.
Whose pencil is this?
She chose the red dress from the two options.
Which dress did she choose from the two options?
He fixed the toy car very carefully.
How did he fix the toy car?
The package arrived this morning.
When did the package arrive?
The baker makes delicious bread.
Who makes delicious bread?
They are going to the amusement park.
Where are they going?
The lesson was about planets.
What was the lesson about?
He travels to work by train.
How does he travel to work?
We need to buy some milk and eggs.
What do we need to buy?
Wh-Type Questions - Usage
The interrogative pronouns who, what, whom, whose, which and the interrogative adverbs where, when, why and how are used to frame information questions.
The structure ‘how + an adjective/adverb’ may also be used to frame information questions.
Frame WH questions to get the underlined part as answers.
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We lived downstairs of the hospital.
Where did we live?
-
He announced that he was going to be a doctor.
What did he announce?
-
He catches the bus.
What does he catch?
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Nature heard the conversation.
What did Nature hear?
-
The queen of violets saw by her side – the converted violet.
Whom did the queen of violets see by her side?
-
The morning routine started with tea.
How did the morning routine start?
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I didn’t mind vegetable shopping.
What did I not mind?
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The final indicator of a country’s independence is the way its children live.
What is the final indicator of a country’s independence?
-
He launched an independent partnership.
What did he launch?
-
The rain water rises the water table in the sand.
What does the rain water rise in the sand?
-
The monsoon starts in June.
When does the monsoon start?
-
We reached America.
Where did we reach?
-
Dimple breaks the glass.
Who breaks the glass?
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20 billion messages are sent every month worldwide.
How many messages are sent every month worldwide?
Additional Examples
Frame questions which will give the following answers/statements.
These are John’s books.
I want a pen.
We will stay with our cousins.
I am going with my aunt.
I went there to meet James.
My boy is the one in red shirt.
I come from Bangkok.
I met him last week.
This bridge is fifty feet long.
My father is sixty years old.
I have two brothers and two sisters.
Mr. Mathews is our headmaster.
We came to this place five years ago.
Answers (Questions for the statements above)
Whose books are these?
What do you want?
Whom will you stay with?
Whom are you going with?
Why did you go there?
Which is your boy?
Where do you come from?
When did you meet him?
How long is this bridge?
How old is your father?
How many brothers and sisters do you have?
Who is your headmaster?
When did you come to this place?
Word Treasures: Meanings to Know
Acute (problem) - Very serious or severe, like a sharp pain.
Adverb - A word that tells more about a verb (action word), an adjective (describing word), or another adverb. It often answers How, When, or Where (e.g., *quickly, yesterday, here*).
Application (of mehendi) - The act of putting something (like henna paint) onto a surface.
Auxiliary Verb - A helping verb (like *be, do, have*, or words like *can, will, should*) that works with a main verb to show tense or to form questions or negative sentences.
Confirmation - An act of making sure something is true or definite, like getting a "yes" to your question.
Delicate - Easily broken or damaged; fine or subtle, like a spider's web.
Determiner - A word that comes before a noun to show which one or how many (e.g., *the* book, *my* cat, *which* toy, *some* cookies).
Drawbacks - Disadvantages or problems; things that are not so good about something.
Exceptional - Unusual, not typical, or outstanding; much better than average.
Experimental - Based on new ideas or methods that are being tested to see if they work.
Guru - An influential teacher or an expert in a particular subject.
Identifying - Recognizing or pointing out who someone is or what something is.
Indicator - A thing that shows or points out something, like a sign.
Interrogative - A word or sentence type used to ask a question (e.g., 'who' is an interrogative pronoun).
Inversion (Subject-Verb) - When the subject and verb (or auxiliary verb) switch places, often to make a question (e.g., "You are happy" becomes "Are you happy?").
Majestic - Having or showing impressive beauty or great dignity, like a king or a huge ocean.
Masses - The ordinary people in society; a large group of people.
Mechanism - A system or process that makes something happen or work.
Meritorious - Deserving reward or praise because it is good or admirable.
Modal Verb - A special kind of helping verb (like *can, will, should, may, must*) that shows possibility, ability, permission, or necessity.
Numerous - Great in number; many.
Nurtures - Cares for and helps to grow or develop, like how a mother nurtures a child.
Parallel (lines) - Lines that are always the same distance apart and will never meet or cross, no matter how far they go.
Partnership - An agreement where two or more people work together to do something.
Perseverance - Continuing to try to do something even when it is difficult or takes a long time.
Prevalent - Widespread or common in a particular area or at a particular time.
Prohibited - Forbidden or not allowed by a law or rule.
Pronoun - A word that takes the place of a noun (a person, place, or thing), like *he, she, it, they, who, what*.
Renewable (energy) - Energy from a source that doesn't run out when used, like sunshine or wind.
Resin - A sticky, yellowish-brown substance that comes from some plants and trees.
Superstitions - Beliefs that are not based on reason or scientific knowledge, often about luck or supernatural things.
Syntax - The rules for how words are arranged to make sensible sentences in a language.
Vaccine - A special medicine (often a shot) that helps your body learn to fight off a particular disease so you don't get sick from it.